Why didn't the government repeat steps to fund the recent wars?
By scorpiobabes
@scorpiobabes (7225)
United States
September 15, 2012 8:10am CST
Many people in the United States have heard about war bonds. While searching for a copy of the poster my grandfather made, I decided to search for information about them.
During World War 2, war bonds were sold to help offset the cost of war. Everyone was involved: professional athletes held exhibition games and the price of admission was a war bond; major singing stars created songs where profits were donated for the purchase of war bonds; children were encouraged to purchase war stamps and when enough were accumulated they could then purchase war bonds. During the time period when they were sold (the Great Depression) was $185 BILLION! It is believed that the United States spent over $200,000,000,000 MORE during the war, and that even include monies loaned to allies!
I wonder why we didn't think to create a NEW war bond project-do you think it would have worked, why or why not?
1 person likes this
2 responses
@p1kef1sh (45681)
•
16 Sep 12
Firstly I don't think that we wage war in the same way that we did back in WW2. Then it was an all out, total war that engaged the whole country and required the entire nationa's economy to be devoted to the war effort. By comparison to today we have much smaller although longer lasting "conflicts". No less awful but not economy threatening. Geared real reserves can bear the cost of these things provided that they don't go beyond what is is the "war chest" or funds available. The USA might find the costs high but as long as mainland America is not threatened or your economic interests overseas not too interrupted you have no need for a war bond - which is a voluntary tax in fact. Let's hope that it stays that way.
@scorpiobabes (7225)
• United States
16 Sep 12
Let's hope that we never go through something like that ever again! I've never been much a fan of war anyway (even though my fiance Jim is a veteran of Desert Storm); I was only thinking of war bonds because of a picture my cousin posted of an article written during WW2 that had a picture of a poster my grandfather created. It was quite a lovely way to label a "tax" that we're still paying for all these years later. Shall we make a toast to world peace then?
@ShepherdSpy (8544)
• Omagh, Northern Ireland
15 Sep 12
I suppose the reason it hasn't come up yet,despite the description of a "War on Terror",the US is not officially on a War footing at this time..this current Military activity is considered to be peacekeeping activity...If it got to the stage you were having a draft again for military enlistment rather than just taking volunteers,things might be about to change both politically and Financially that might lead that way..
@scorpiobabes (7225)
• United States
15 Sep 12
Thank you for explaining the difference. Perhaps someone should explain the difference between the two to the news outlets so that they quit saying that we're actually in a war. If this was a peacekeeping mission, then our military has paid a terrible price in terms of the number of disabled or killed members of the armed forces. And the government will continue to pay for this little mission for a lot longer than they ever intended.
