Nothing to see here. Move along.

[WilliamPitt]

U.S. Predicts Bumper Year in Arms Sales

By REUTERS
Published: December 4, 2006

WASHINGTON ( Reuters) - The U.S. government is on its way to brokering about $20 billion in arms sales in the fiscal year that began October 1, steady with last year's near-record total, the Pentagon official responsible for such sales said on Monday.

``We're forecasting in the $20 billion range'' for fiscal 2007, Air Force Lt. Gen. Jeffrey Kohler, director of the Defense Security Cooperation Agency, told the Reuters Aerospace and Defense Summit in Washington.

In fiscal 2006, which ended on September 30, foreign military sales notified to Congress reached $20.9 billion, nearly double the $10.6 billion the previous year.

Last year's total was second only to 1993, which topped $30 billion, swollen by sales to the Middle East after the first Gulf War.

More: http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/business/business-aero-arms-summit-arms-sales-usa.html

[annabanana]

1. Is it too late to attempt applying brakes

on this runaway train?

[BeHereNow]

16. Much too late...

Our "representatives" get filthy rich from
these contracts- think "we, the people"
matter to them?
Think again.
As a matter of fact, think nation wide"Katrina'd"
It's coming in our lifetimes, perhaps
sooner than we think.
BHN

[Junkdrawer]

2. Without looking: we're selling the arms to the Saudis...

Am I right? :shrug:

[WilliamPitt]

6. For starters.

[Junkdrawer]

8. Seen this little nugget...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=2638823&mesg_id=2638823

[Fire Walk With Me]

3. The tail wags the machine.

This is what we must overcome in order to place human values (such as life) ahead of a small number of conscience-less profiteers and resource dominators.

[Lone_Star_Dem]

4. So, we've created enough unrest to bolster our arms business

Can we bring the troops home now? Or are we planning on more ME division and unrest to solidify the deal first?

[Prisoner_Number_Six]

5. How can that possibly be when

America has used up the world's supply of ammo?????? :shrug:

[cadmium]

25. We outsource it. n/t

[nam78_two]

7. Oh great!

:sarcasm:

[leftofthedial]

9. it's our only source of revenue

the economy is in the toilet

the deficit and foreign ownership of our debt are totally out of control

only the poor and middle class pay taxes

[QuestionAll...]

13. and only the uber rich don't 'donate' for war causes.

they don't generally donate their children nor their dripping with blood missile wares. Let the little people handle that fluff while we scrape the world clean to stuff our pockets. I am so freshly disgusted by this.

[QuestionAll...]

10. and how much are the legs going for these days?

omg, that's is so disgusting and unfair. Peace Has No Chance as long as money rules.

[uppityperson]

11. War makes money. For some.

[Rockstone]

12. Its only machine to make money

[WHEN CRABS ROAR]

14. Makes you proud doesn't it ?

To see all those guns in the hands of kids worldwide.

[lapfog_1]

15. Well, if we have to fight them there so we don't fight them here...

it's only fair that we sell them some military hardware first!

:sarcasm: :sarcasm: :sarcasm:

[karlrschneider]

17. Exporting burgers and fries doesn't seem to be a viable concept,

McBombs are the only things we actually manufacture any more...



...

[spanone]

18. the military industrial complex

~snip~ In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military industrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist. Dwight D. Eisenhower Jan. 1961~snip~

http://mcadams.posc.mu.edu/ike.htm

Cheney & freinds are making hay while the sun shines.

[karlrschneider]

26. Ike was one of the last sane Republicans to hold public office.

Not that he was completely blameless (what General ever was?) but he appeared to grasp his own legacy and its consequences while he still lived.

[TahitiNut]

19. They got our dollars. We have to sell them something. They don't want our SUVs.

:shrug:

After all, currency is only worth what it can buy. That's what "balance of trade" is all about.

[cadmium]

20. The first Iraq invasion was like an arms trade show. This one

is a like a Everything Must Go sale

[pinto]

21. and from Pravda:

It all smacks of drug cartels vying for markets.

Russia tops USA in arms sales and becomes world’s largest arms supplier
Front page / Russia / Economics
02.11.2006

Russia has sold more weapons than the U.S. in 2005, first time since the collapse of the Soviet Union, according to a report by the Congressional Research Service. The report, entitled “Conventional Arms Transfers to Developing Nations 1998-2005,” says that in 2005 Moscow surpassed U.S. and France in weapons sales, which totaled $7.1 billion.

Competition at the world arms sales market has become something of a continuation of the Cold War. Experts indicate that today’s competition is not a political struggle between the two nations that hold conflicting ideologies; it is an economic variety of competition and struggle for the world dominance. However, Russian military experts doubt the figures cited by the analytical service of U.S. congress and await the text of the report.

The congressional study says Russia has become a leading arms supplier following the recent sale of Russian weapons to Iran and China. Russia will supply 29 SA-15 surface-to-air missile systems to the Iranian Air Force. The second deal calls for the supply of 8 IL-78M Tanker Transport to China, Nezavizimaya Gazeta reports. The recent deals total $700 million. Russia would have sat next to France on the list of the world’s biggest arms exporters if the above deals had not been cut. France’s arms sales to developing nations reached a total of $6.3 billion. The U.S. delivered weapons to a total amount of $6.2 billion.

“The United Stated had dominated the highly competitive market of the conventional arms sales since the collapse of the USSR,” said Richard Grimmet, a military analyst who coauthored the report. “Now the situation has changed. Moscow is turning into an increasingly aggressive and pushy player on the weapons market. The market has been booming over the last few years. The arms race intensifies as a result of the developments,” added Grimmet.

http://english.pravda.ru/russia/economics/02-11-2006/85336-Russian_weapons-0

[Junkdrawer]

22. We sell to the Saudis..Russia sells to Iran...Iraq in the middle...

Can you say "BOOM"....

[cadmium]

24. Ironically, I believe that even though we are big arms exporters ...

that many of the arms that are sold via American companies are actually manufactured overseas so American workers don't even always benefit economically.

[Jcrowley]

23. Small arms = big business

Since 1992, the United States has exported more than $142 billion dollars worth of weaponry to states around the world.<1> The U.S. dominates this international arms market, supplying just under half of all arms exports in 2001, roughly two and a half times more than the second and third largest suppliers. <2 > U.S. weapons sales help outfit non-democratic regimes, soldiers who commit gross human rights abuses against their citizens and citizens of other countries, and forces in unstable regions on the verge of, in the middle of, or recovering from conflict. 

U.S.-origin weapons find their way into conflicts the world over. The United States supplied arms or military technology to more than 92% of the conflicts under way in 1999.<3> The costs to the families and communities afflicted by this violence is immeasurable. But to most arms dealers, the profit accumulated outweighs the lives lost. In the period from 1998-2001, over 68% of world arms deliveries were sold or given to developing nations, where lingering conflicts or societal violence can scare away potential investors.<4>  

Of course, a loss of investment opportunities is not the only way Americans are impacted by the weapons trade. In addition to paying billions of dollars every year to support weapons exports, Americans may also feel the impact of increasing instability overseas. The United States military has had to face troops previously trained by its own military or supplied with U.S. weaponry in Panama, Iraq, Somalia, Haiti, and now in Afghanistan. Due to the advanced capabilities these militaries have acquired from past U.S. training and sales, the U.S. had to invest much more money and manpower in these conflicts than would have otherwise been needed. 

There are few restrictions on whom the government may export arms to. One notable exception is the Leahy Law, which prohibits U.S. military aid or training to foreign military units known to have committed human rights abuses. Under the Pentagon's interpretation of the law, however, these restrictions may be lifted if the foreign government filters out the "few bad apples" in that particular unit. An International Code of Conduct on Arms Sales is also being negotiated with other arms exporters in the hopes of creating a common set of export criteria. Read on for more facts.

http://www.fas.org/asmp/fast_facts.htm

Small Arms—they cause 90% of civilian casualties
Author and Page information
Skip this section and go straight to the main content
by Anup Shah
This Page Last Updated Saturday, January 21, 2006
• This page: http://www.globalissues.org/Geopolitics/ArmsTrade/SmallArms.asp.
• To print full details (expanded/alternative links, side notes, etc.) use the printer-friendly version:
• http://www.globalissues.org/Geopolitics/ArmsTrade/SmallArms.asp?p=1

The growing availability of small arms has been a major factor in the increase in the number of conflicts, and in hindering smoother rebuilding and development after a conflict has ended. It is estimated, for example, that:
• There are around half a billion military small arms around the world;
• Some 300,000 to half a million people around the world are killed by them each year;
• They are the major cause of civilian casualties in modern conflicts.

http://www.globalissues.org/Geopolitics/ArmsTrade/SmallArms.asp

Small arms = big business

Making and selling small arms is a worldwide business. Nearly 7 million commercial handguns and long guns are produced annually. About 75% of these are made in the USA or the European Union. Other important producers include Brazil, China, Canada, Japan and the Russian Federation.
•    At least 90 countries can or do produce small arms and/or ammunition.
•    Around 16 billion units of ammunition were produced during 2001.
•    The value of small arms and ammunition production was at least US$7.4 billion in 2000.
•    The glob al small arms stockpile is estimated at 639 million guns. Approximately 59% of this arsenal is in the hands of civilians – over 377 million weapons. The remainder are owned by government armed forces (about 39%), police, insurgents and other non-state forces.

http://www.iansa.org/media/wmd.htm

[DemReadingDU]

27. morning kick