America's Allies Don't Feel Threatened

The Mighty Whig recognizes that we live today in a security paradox:  real security issues are diminishing, but we act as though they are increasing.  In Texas, for example, the homicide rate has steadily gone down, but our state legislature just voted to permit the open carry of firearms.   Now some people at least feel safer.

Here's an opposite element of the paradox: the developed world keeps harping on the new, challenging threats, but they spend less and less money to face them.  That seems to suggest they are not nearly as worried as they say they are.  Or maybe, like Doug Bandow says here, they are just pathetic:  Our Allies Are Persistently Pathetic

He cites some important numbers:  NATO members are spending an average of 1.5 percent of GDP on defense, while the lower limit for membership is supposed to be 2 percent.   They depend on America to save their bacon.  South Korea gets threatened by North Korea, and what's Seoul's  response?  Please America, send us more aircraft.

Another interesting fact from Bandow:  the Saudis spend more per year ($81 billion) than the Russians.  (And yet they are bogged down in Yemen.)

The Republicans are also two-faced about this:  they wail constantly about Russia and other threats, but they cut the Pentagon by $1 trillion over the next decade.