Follow the Money

Andrew Cockburn's essay in The Pentagon Labyrinth is titled "Follow the Money."  There are a lot of people who will say that is an undignified way to assess America's national security apparatus; they might even also say that Cockburn's focus is cynical.  I would personally venture to guess that a disproportionate number of those saying so are doing rather well - thank you very much - in that same national security apparatus.  Or, they plan to do so in the foreseeable future.

 

Cockburn summarizes his argument in a interview in the ongoing series conducted by Federal News Radio.  Chris Dorobek of the DorobekInsider Show interviews Andrew Cockburn at http://www.federalnewsradio.com/?sid=2317718&nid=150

 

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Following the money and understanding why it is important is key to comprehending why the Pentagon, Congress, the manufacturers, and the think-tanks behave the way they do.  After all, as Cockburn says in the DorobekInsider interview, why do you think the manufacturers put all those ads in the Washington Metro system.  They're not there for the area's teachers or the local sports teams' fans. 

 

But there is much more to following the money than just that.  Cockburn explains fully in his essay in The Pentagon Labyrinth: 10 Short Essays to Help You Through It.  He addresses perhaps the most powerful and recurrent theme underlying contemporary defense community behavior.  Find Cockburn's essay at http://pogoarchives.org/labyrinth/07-cockburn-w-covers.pdf

 

.  Find the entire book (download it for free) at http://dnipogo.org/labyrinth/

 

 and http://www.cdi.org/program/index.cfm?programid=37

 

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Have a comment?  Pro or con?  We welcome a public debate.

_____________________________
Winslow T. Wheeler
Director
Straus Military Reform Project
Center for Defense Information
301 791-2397