Thread by @ThyConsigliori

John Minford, #SunTzu 2:2 "Allowing for expenses at home and at the front, dealings with envoys and advisers; glue and lacquer, repairs to chariots and armour; the daily cost of all this will exceed one thousand taels of silver."

Before we dive in, a couple of points. First, here's the link to the digital table of contents for this series over at my @WarForAmerica21 account: bit.ly/2Uw6sPS

Second great thanks to @BlakeBecker49 for his tremendous research and analysis!!!

Teal = $30,000.

Logistics. Are they expensive or what? In today's dollars, all these things cost $300,000 per day. Do the math with me. $3 Mil every 10 days, $9 Mil per month, and a year is $108 Mil. I know that's not even a rounding error at the DOD for the crazy stuff we do. But even still!

First there are people you have to pay, envoys and advisors. Second, parts and supplies and costs of repair for transport and attack vehicles, heavy and light. And you don't just pay on the move, you pay at home too. If you're going to do this, you better have the budget.

I've told the story many times, how I completely supported President George W over the Iraq War, until candidate Trump persuaded me otherwise. I am such a natural hawk, and I was crazed with rage after 9/11. Shock and awe calmed me down. And how about those Tomahawk missiles?

There was something deeply satisfying to my hawkish, enraged soul, that America could afford virtually infinite numbers of those munitions. I knew about the costs of our chariots and armour, and thought, send in some more. I was angry. I also judged George HW for not finishing.

Do you have any idea how much one trillion dollars is? I don't believe anyone does. I think it's a myth. Numbers must actually stop somewhere around a billion dollars. How can you think about such things? Okay, I jest. But now, when I hear @realDonaldTrump count out the costs...

I grow less and less hawkish. I begin to care about the costs. Not only of the bombs, but of all the people and systems. By the way, I'm still 100% in support of the strongest military readiness, as we know, so we do not have to employ it. I accept our entire arsenal.

And when I hear that we're falling behind other great powers, I think about, yes, the trillions we spent on the wars, and how far forward our arsenal would be if we'd invested all that rather than spent it. I wonder what research and development costs, don't you?

I don’t believe #SunTzu is telling us not to fight, never to fight. Many do, you realize. Many believe he’s 100% opposed to war. My reading is different. I believe he's simply "getting real" with us. Wake up. Count costs in every way. And if you're going to do it...

You must be ready to cover those costs from commencement to victory. And what are you buying, exactly? We'll learn more about that in coming verses. For today, just join me in the meditation over the long haul of the expenditure. Are you ready? Are we?

#WarForAmerica2020