By Richard Halloran
Los Angeles Times
June 1, 2008

Sirs,

I was amazed to read that Robert Scheer believes the United States has no credible military threat in today’s world sufficient to justify the defense spending necessary for the U.S. to maintain its technological edge in war fighting capability.

Mr. Scheer is just flat wrong in his factual analysis. As a percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) the 2008 fiscal year Defense budget is less than in any of the past 5 years, and every single budget between 1948 through 1996 spent more as a percentage of the GDP than we are in 2008. Only 4 years in our history did we spend less (1999 through 2001) and we are suffering because of that. On top of that, the Congress recently spent 168 Billion dollars to “stimulate the economy” an amount equal to almost a third of the current defense budget.

Our country must continue to maintain its military superiority or we will lose our superpower standing in the world. The results of having a technological edge over an opponent was demonstrated in the first gulf war when no Iraqi tank or aircraft could defeat any of ours in battle. It didn’t matter that Iraq possessed a formidable military stockpile, or that they outnumbered us, in battle they were doomed.

With China and Iran (as well as Russia) continuing to develop more and more advanced aircraft, submarines, as well as a true “blue water” Navy in order to challenge the U.S. in the Pacific and middle East, it is necessary for the U.S. to stay ahead of every nation in military technological advances. Having 100 obsolete fighters in an air war is worthless when your opponent can shoot them all down without losing a single plane, regardless of the cost of that single plane.

Our Air Force is still relying heavily on tankers and bombers built in the fifties (KC-135’s and B-52’s), fighters that are literally falling apart in the sky (F-15’s) and C-5 cargo planes that stay grounded more hours than they are fit to fly. We need an upgraded modern Air Force regardless of the cost.

Richard A. Stewart