A Confederacy of War Whores

What worries me is that there are people who will be surprised by what this story ('Behind TV Analysts, Pentagon’s Hidden Hand') from the NY Times has to say (try the multimedia show if you can't be arsed to read). Seduction isn't just a game played with one eye towards the bed.

How many Americans will recall Eisenhower's farewell address from 1961?

'...A vital element in keeping the peace is our military establishment. Our arms must be mighty, ready for instant action, so that no potential aggressor may be tempted to risk his own destruction...

This conjunction of an immense military establishment and a large arms industry is new in the American experience. The total influence — economic, political, even spiritual — is felt in every city, every statehouse, every office of the federal government. We recognize the imperative need for this development. Yet we must not fail to comprehend its grave implications. Our toil, resources and livelihood are all involved; so is the very structure of our society.

In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military-industrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist.

We must never let the weight of this combination endanger our liberties or democratic processes. We should take nothing for granted. Only an alert and knowledgeable citizenry can compel the proper meshing of the huge industrial and military machinery of defense with our peaceful methods and goals so that security and liberty may prosper together...'

An earlier draft apparently used the term 'military-industrial-congressional complex'.

Beware the lens you view the world through