Tsk, tsk, John. You left out a few facts or got them wrong entirely - very unscientific.

The defense BUDGET for the CURRENT fiscal year is 25% of the total U.S. federal budget. The ACTUAL AMOUNT SPENT IN 2010 was 20% of the entire federal spending.

What you are confused about is: DISCRETIONARY spending and MANDATORY spending. DISCRETIONARY SPENDING was 40% of all federal spending. Defense spending was ONE-HALF of all DISCRETIONARY spending. The OTHER HALF was all other discretionary spending, such as housing, transportation, veterans' affairs, energy, science, etc.

MANDATORY SPENDING accounts for the other 60% (and growing exponentially) of all federal spending. This includes interest on our debt, Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, Prescription Drug Program and other mandatory spending. These must be paid - no choice in the matter.

And this 60% of our budget will become greater and greater in coming years further squeezing out the discretionary spending. Interest on our debt and entitlement spending is where the real problem lies - not with the money spent on defense which is guaranteed in the Preamble to our Consitution - "...provide for the common defence..."

Now, as for why is our defense spending so much larger that some other nations. World War II. After WW II, the European nations' & Japan's economies had been decimated. They could not afford to rebuild their economies plus their militaries. We stepped in and said: Don't rebuild your military; we'll take care of you. So we built military bases all over the world.

Europe, therefore, had the financial ability in the last 66 years to build social programs instead (and some are now regretting how far they went with becoming socialist). And what militaries they do have are token militaries - not world-class fighting machines.

So, the U.S. (and the U.S.S.R. until the end of the Cold War) became the world's leading militaries. Like it or not, the U.S. is the world's policeman. And, if you don't like the U.S. being the top military in the world and the military policeman, then answer me this. Who would you like it to be? Because, believe me, it will be someone. Would you like it to be the United Nations? That's a joke - we support the U.N. Would you like it to be China? Because that's what the future may hold for all of us if our miltary budget is cut in half.

Barbara