Defense Cuts in the UK

The British government (a Conservative government, BTW) is poised to cut defense spending 8% over the next 4 years. That's amazing!  British Conservatives have the ability to launch cuts in their defense spending.  What would that look like in America, you ask?  Let's do the math.

America currently spends $510 billion on defense.  If we were to assume a straight-line decrease of 2%/year cumulative, that would look something like this:

• Year 1: $10.2 billion cut
• Year 2: $20.4 billion cut
• Year 3: $30.6 billion cut
• Year 4: $40.8 billion cut

This would represent a savings of $102 billion over the course of 4 years.  That's not chump change.  That would keep social security, medicare AND every other social program known to man afloat forever.

But of course that will never happen...  Corporate welfare queens, especially those in the defense industry would never let something like that get through.  Remember, kids, we live in the age of the Military-Industrial complex!