An army has its uses, but a lot of people think what the US is currently doing is counterproductive. I suppose only history will give the final verdict, but it's looking like an explosive money-pit at the moment.

I'm curious why it's costing the US so much though. There have been a lot larger mobilisations in history.

I always found amusing what the SAS do with most the equipment they're issued - they bury it (whoops!). When you're running around for days in enemy territory all those kilos add up. Of course the government always thinks it knows what's best for the troops, so they keep on issuing junk the troops don't want instead of the junk the troops need.

Perhaps funnelling all that money into troop training would serve a better purpose. There are a lot of nations with armies that are better trained than the US. While those armies are a lot smaller, each soldier is worth several of his US counterparts.