[zrn900]

The real problem is that none of that spending actually goes to the people.

[rayiner]

Virtually all of it goes “to the people.” Even the military budget is mostly payroll or operations (only 18% is procurement going to defense contractors). Social security is checks to individuals. Medicare is checks to healthcare providers.

[zrn900]

> Even the military budget is mostly payroll or operations (only 18% is procurement going to defense contractors)

Not in a privatized defense environment where things are marked up 4000%. Yeah, you read that right.

[tptacek]

A lot of those 4000% markup stories are apparently not real, but rather accounting artifacts; they're cases where, like, a wrench bills out at $20,000, but what's actually happening is that the procurement was for a whole stealth bomber, and the cost gets spread across all the line items pro rata.

[zrn900]

> but rather accounting artifacts;

That is how money disappears. Like the $3 trillion that the Pentagon 'lost' and still 'cant find'.

[rayiner]

The 18% is at those marked up prices.