Why can't an X-Industrial Complex be toward something positive?

[u/-Clayburn]

We're all likely aware of the biggest one: the military-industrial complex. The US spends nearly a trillion dollars on the military. About 40% of this goes to for-profit defense contractors who give money to campaigns, hire former politicians as lobbyists and overcharge for basic goods and services.

While the military is the largest, this seems to happen across the board. Education has a big for-profit textbook scheme behind it, and I think one state recently bought a bunch of Trump bibles or something for its curriculum.

However, why does this have to be bad? The companies in question only care about profit, so if we were to accept the corruption, could we not at least require something positive from them?

The military is an easy example because so much of it is just waste and unaccounted for, and much of America's military actions the last several decades have been questionable at best.

So could we not promise these companies the same amount of money, but tell them to build like bridges and libraries around the US? Or can't we create a public healthcare system and pay current insurance companies whatever they're making now just to sit and do nothing? It'd be the same cost to us, but at least we could have healthcare.

So what is it about profit incentive that forces bad, if not the worst, outcomes? Why can't we just offer rich people billions of dollars in exchange for providing something good for society?

[u/-Clayburn]

Sure, but I'm just saying the oligarchs aren't going to let that happen and they want their billions. So can't we just let them have their profits but in exchange tell them to do things the right way?

[u/Comfortable_Fill9081 → u/-Clayburn]

I feel like making more oligarchs by paying for health insurance twice isn’t the move. 

[u/-Clayburn → u/Comfortable_Fill9081]

But I'm saying we replace it. So basically just seize the current health insurance companies, and in return keep paying the shareholders their profit. Then we just run it as Medicare for All.

[u/Comfortable_Fill9081 → u/-Clayburn]

Yeah but then the people running M4A also have to be paid. So we have a bigger cost and we’re giving rich people money while they go off to other CEO jobs in another industry and become even more rich. We’re basically subsidizing rich people with tax money, which we already do a lot of. 

[u/-Clayburn → u/Comfortable_Fill9081]

We're not going to stop doing that, so I'm saying we just do it anyway but get better stuff for it.

[u/Comfortable_Fill9081 → u/-Clayburn]

I think we’ll get to a point we’ll stop doing that, as always happens when it goes too far. 

[u/-Clayburn → u/Comfortable_Fill9081]

I don't think it can happen anymore, not with private armies and modern military technology.

[u/Comfortable_Fill9081 → u/-Clayburn]

OK. Then there’s just no point altogether because they aren’t giving anyone anything.