Nation?s military spending excessive

To the editor:

It is essential we keep a strong national defense.

But there?s a difference between defense spending and military spending. We do not need troops and embassies in 130 foreign countries. Our presence in some of those locations is making us more enemies than friends.

Plus we can?t afford it! We are over $14 trillion in debt and climbing, paying our military bills by printing worthless dollars that inflate our currency.

It?s time, therefore, we addressed our national deficit by reducing military spending and bringing troops home.

Spending on the Pentagon has nearly doubled in the past decade, military spending makes up more than 50 percent of discretionary spending, and more than the military budgets of all other top military-spending countries combined.

Weapons manufacturers claim we?ll lose jobs if we cut the military budget.

But investing the same amount in education as we invest in weapons-building would create THREE TIMES as many jobs according the economics department of the University of Massachusetts. Investing in road and bridge repair would put a lot more people to work than investing in new fighter-jets we don?t need.

My advice to the supercommitee: Listen to the experts and the American people. Cut more from military spending than from entitlements and domestic spending. Create good jobs here at home rebuilding America. 

? David Ballou, Fairfield