Download The sustainability of War and the Military industrial complex

Aaron Valentine
Sustainability Studies
Matrix paper
11/13/2012
The sustainability of War and the Military industrial complex
Introduction
Throughout human history, there have always been conflicts, ranging from ideological crusades
to squabbling over precious resources. As such, war is unfortunately a fact for society. Many people
oppose waging war for various reasons, from the environmental damage to the loss of life, to the untold
trillions of dollars spent on destruction, and rightly so. However, this is not to say that all aspects of the
military industrial complex are bad. There are many positive ways that the military has influenced the
environment around them via different avenues such as technology investment, mobilization on the
home front, and the opportunities given to communities to rebuild after the conflict has passed.
Mobilization
War is perhaps the single most significant way to mobilize and engage a society into direct
action. There are very few things that can compare to a nation’s ability to get things done when on a
wartime footing. World War 2 was an excellent example of how the country came together for a
common cause and how the government promoted programs on the home front designed to engage
this collective. Scrap drives are perhaps the most well-known way communities got involved, recycling
everything from steel and rubber to kitchen fat and oil rags. The overall effect of these scrap drives is
hard to gauge, one account points to a value of 17 million tons of scrap were requested by the war
board to aid in the war effort (1). More recent evidence suggests that these drives served more as
morale boosters and served little practical importance. Perhaps a better example was the home
recycling the war economy forced. During the war, the American economy became an economy of
scarcity as all available resources were diverted to the war effort. This meant that people had to make
do with less, encouraging recycling and thriftiness.
Another way people were getting involved was in planting victory gardens. Victory gardens were
planted all over the country and by the end of the war, almost 40% of domestic vegetable production
came from these gardens (2). The home gardening movement was also strongly influenced by the
victory gardens.
Part of mobilization is the dissemination of information that comes from the military when
soldiers retire. Currently there are roughly 100,000 armed servicemen retiring every year, and many of
these people are bringing back new theories and philosophies on environmental thought into their
communities. These soldiers also have the distinction of being trained leaders, and could be capable of
employing their newfound environmental teachings in their local societies. This is a direct result of
initiatives put in place by the military regarding green technologies and investments as discussed in the
next section (3).
Technology
Military and technology have a long and rich association with one another. The need for a
superior army drives research and developments on a variety of fronts some of which go on to have
civilian applications. An example of this is canning. Canning was invented in France as a way to preserve
food for Napoleon’s armies during their campaigns, and has since found widespread use in consumer
markets. Canning is important because it allows people to store food that would otherwise go to waste,
allowing for more efficient food production, which has obvious sustainability applications.
More recently, The US military has begun spending increasing amounts of money on green
technology in an effort to reduce their dependence on foreign sources of fuel. This is as much a
sustainability issue as it is a national defense issue. All three major branches have plans to be 50%
renewable by 2020, by using a variety of initiatives such as renewable energy on bases, energy efficient
technology, and biofuel production. Navy seals are trained to be fuel and water neutral, and solar panels
are increasingly being deployed as a way to produce energy for charging batteries in various devices,
energy that would otherwise come from diesel generators. Through these efforts, the military is proving
it can be a sustainable entity (3).
Rebuilding
Like a cleansing wildfire that burnt through the forest clearing underbrush and allowed the
ecosystem to be revitalized and renewed, war can play a similar role in society. The best example of this
can be found in post WW2 Japan, where the country experienced an economic “miracle” leading to an
unprecedented economic boom that lasted 50 years and grew the economy by 73 fold, compared to the
8 fold growth experienced by the American economy in the same period (5). This was made possible by
new legislation and investment that occurred as a result of the war.
In Afghanistan, soldiers are teaching farmers in war torn regions how to more effectively
manage their crops, as well as how to grow crops that free farmers of the danger of growing drug
products such as poppies like they currently do (4). This has also benefited farmers by increasing their
yields without massive increases in inputs achieved through better management techniques such as
crop rotation leading to a more sustainable farming practice.
Conclusion
With over 4% of the world’s GDP spent on military spending, the military industrial complex
represents one of the single largest spenders in the current economy (6). While their purpose is to wage
war, they also represent an effective intervention point for changing environmental thought. It is
important to discuss these positive benefits that the military industrial complex can have when talking
about the overall sustainability of the military and war.
Bibliography
1.)
Binus, Joshua. "Lincoln High Scrap Metal Drive, 1942." Oregon History Project. Oregon Historical Society,
2004.
<http://www.ohs.org/education/oregonhistory/historical_records/dspDocument.cfm?doc_ID=CBA0CB0
E-9227-1C2C-FD13C4398B8107BA>.
2.)
Pollan, Michael. "THE FOOD ISSUE; Farmer In Chief." The New York Times. The New York Times, 12 Oct.
2008. Web. 13 Nov. 2012. <http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/12/magazine/12policy-t.html?_r=0>.
3.)
Dumaine, Brian. "Can the Navy Really Go Green?" Fortune Tech. CNN, 28 Aug. 2012. Web.
<http://tech.fortune.cnn.com/2012/08/28/navy-mabusgreen/http://tech.fortune.cnn.com/2012/08/28/navy-mabus-green/>.
4.)
Michaels, Jim. "Afghan Poppy Crops down 40% since '08 as Key Towns Secured." USA Today. N.p., 17
June 2012. <http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/world/story/2012-06-12/poppyafghanistan-opium/55655966/1>.
5.)
Maciamo. "Japan's Postwar Occupation and the Economic Boom in the 1950's." N.p., 15 May 2004.
Web. 13 Nov. 2012. <http://www.willamette.edu/~rloftus/postwareconomy.htm>.
6.)
"The World Factbook." CIA Factbook. CIA, n.d. Web.
<https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/>.