Education and Military Spending

[John Simkin]

In 2000 the US spent $288.8 billion on the military. In 2004 it was $399.1 billion. In 2005 it is forecast to reach $420.7 billion. At the same time Bush has made cuts in the taxes paid by the rich. In contrast, the US only spends 4.8 of its GDP (Gross Domestic Product) on education. This is very low when compared to other industrialised countries. The state also spends far less than other industrialized countries on things like health and welfare. Even so, Bush has found it impossible to balance the budget. This is bound to cause economic hardship for US citizens in the future.

When you look at the relationship between military and education spending. The record in the UK is actually worse than that of the US. Whereas US spends 4.8 per cent of GDP on education, the UK spends 4.5. By comparison, Finland spends 6.1 and France 5.8. Is it so surprising that the UK education system is in crisis?

http://web.sipri.org/contents/milap/milex/mex_burden.html