John Vibes

August 12, 2015

(ANTIMEDIA) Last week it was reported that defense contractors across the board are increasing their lobbying budgets to ensure their weapons continue to flow to the U.S. military. The news coincided with reports that many of the recent strikes against ISIS have killed hundreds of civilians.

According to a report published in Time Magazine by the Center for Public Integrity, the top 50 defense contractors spent $58.5 million combined on lobbying in the second quarter of 2015. The figure is a 28% increase from the $45.7 million spent in the second quarter of last year.

The report also indicated that the infamous National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) was one of the main bills these contractors collectively lobbied to pass.

Another report released this week showed that U.S. military efforts are not doing anything to protect America. In fact, they are killing hundreds of civilians in the war against ISIS.

The report, published by the activist group Airwars, documented airstrikes in both Iraq and Syria. According to the data, somewhere between 459 and 591 civilians were killed in 52 different bombings carried out by U.S. and NATO forces.

If it is the government that decides when there is peace and when there is war, then isn’t it an obvious conflict of interest for it to be in bed with the people selling bombs? It is not rare for a high-ranking member of the government to sit at the head of one of these companies and act as chairman or CEO (think Dick Cheney/Halliburton). Their paychecks and bonuses are a direct reflection of whether or not the country is at war, and the bonuses are usually enough to drown out the dissent of the American public.

Although corruption within the military-industrial complex is open and documented, it is rarely discussed. If the public was actually aware of how this industry worked, there would be little support for perpetual, senseless wars. People across the world must realize that our enemies are the people building destructive weapons and instigating wars— not the people on the front lines who are dying as a result of their “leaders’” ignorance.

Most people on Earth are naturally opposed to war. It is only a small percentage that keeps this cycle going. The average citizen of every country wants peace, yet it is the average citizen on the front lines. Soldiers are torn away from family and friends to risk their lives for someone else’s gain. Every single time there is a war, the people are lied to and manipulated into fighting for land, natural resources, or strategic advancement that only benefits those in power. Our brothers and sisters who die in war are merely pawns to the ruling class, and just like in a game of chess, the pawns are sent by the crown to die with little concern for their well-being.

This article (Defense Contractors Increase Lobbying Budgets as US-Led ISIS Strikes Kill Civilians) is free and open source. You have permission to republish this article under a Creative Commons license with attribution to the author andTheAntiMedia.org. Tune in! Anti-Media Radio airs Monday through Friday @ 11pm Eastern/8pm Pacific. Help us fix our typos:edits@theantimedia.org.

John Vibes is an author, researcher and investigative journalist who takes a special interest in the counter-culture and the drug war. In addition to his writing and activist work he organizes a number of large events including the Free Your Mind Conference, which features top caliber speakers and whistle-blowers from all over the world. You can contact him and stay connected to his work at his Facebook page. You can find his 65 chapter Book entitled “Alchemy of the Timeless Renaissance” at bookpatch.com.