Guns,
Butter, and
Vietnam
Finance
A
Look at Domestic Moneys
and
Foreign Conflict
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"The
ultimate economic consequences of the Vietnam War can never be known with
any degree of precision. The war affected
the
entire society in so many ways that everyone's life was touched at some
point if only by the atmosphere it created."
Anthony Campagna, The Economic Consequences of the
Vietnam War,
51.
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Public finance deals with the
social and economic effects of government policies. In a democracy, the
government serves as the "primary representative institution of the collective
will of the people. Thus, government power is, or should be, popular power"
(Gabriel). With these connections in place, it should not be difficult
to form the connection between public finance and war. No, the association
does not involve number crunching military accountants but rather the spending
decisions necessary to fund such endeavors. Wars cannot be supported by
sidewalk lemonade stands; military involvement is not something that a
few wealthy individuals can back financially. Extensive financing requires
federal provisions-moneys that come from the largest revenue base: taxes.
United States involvement in the Vietnam Conflict produced the same need
for policy reform as any significantly funded battle. However, as we struggle
to understand the social differences of the war in Indochina we encounter
similar distinctions in an economic analysis. Many question "will we ever
get over Vietnam?" while others claim that its financing did not take much
of a toll on the American economy. The answer? That depends how we flip
the coin . . .
Lori
Friedenberg
Public
Finance
Spring
2000
lafriede@mtholyoke.edu
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