@ISIDEWITHQuestionsForeign policyStarted 9yrs agoActive 3wks ago

Should the government increase or decrease military spending?

Should Ireland increase or decrease military spending?

The average EU country spends 1.3% of its GDP on defence. Ireland currently spends .5% (a decline of .4% since 2008). Proponents of higher defence spending argue that the low spending puts the country at risk and the spending level should be raised to match other developed EU countries. Opponents argue that raising spending is unnecessary since armed conflicts can be prevented through diplomacy.

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Answer Overview

Response rates from 437 St. George's voters.

38%
Increase
32%
Decrease
36%
Increase
32%
Decrease
2%
Increase, but only after our deficit is drastically reduced

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Other Popular Answers

Unique answers from St. George's voters whose views went beyond the provided options.

 @9ZWFB36answered…3wks3W

There is a possibility of 'Water wars' in the future which could put us at risk, but instead, I think we should be more proactive in working in solidarity with the worst affected by many of the world's issues. Again I know that we out of the western world will have done the least damage really, but that has us in a special position where we could be a shining light to many of these deeply misguided nations

 @9ZVTW4Qanswered…3wks3W

Military spend should stop world wide because the killing of people is crazy and we kinda need to stop doing this soon!!!

 @9ZGSPPYanswered…1mo1MO

Ireland should maintain a modest but effective defense capability to ensure national security and contribute to global peacekeeping. At the same time, it should focus on diplomacy and non-military solutions to conflict, balancing peace efforts without escalating the potential for war.

 @9ZKBMHGanswered…1mo1MO

Increase it to make sure all Irish troops are able to properly defend themselves, especially on their current peacekeeping missions in war torn areas. We need our troops to have adequate and up to date training and equipment

 @9ZHD78Hanswered…1mo1MO

increase it to give those in the armed forces a better standard of living in line with todays standards and inflation

 @9YN486Qanswered…2mos2MO

Increase if it means our military are safely and comfortably living with up to date combat and information.

 @9H9NZH3answered…1yr1Y

Increase, however the funding should be used specifically for what Ireland needs to defend its shores & to fulfill UN peacekeeping, not power projection.

 @9LNFT33answered…8mos8MO

Increase only in so much as it brings our army and navy forces up to required levels for our existing commitments

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 @ISIDEWITH submitted…2mos2MO

Trump's Deportation Storm: America Braces for Mass Exodus of Immigrants

For months, immigration advocates have been planning for the possibility of Donald Trump’s return to the White House. Now, their worst fears have arrived.Immigrants’ rights groups have spent the last year preparing for a second Trump term and an overhaul of the nation’s immigration system, analyzing Trump’s proposals, drafting legal briefs, coordinating messaging and organizing aid for immigrants and asylum seekers. They responded to Trump’s victory with alarm and vowed to put up a fight, setting the stage for four more years of contentious court battles with his administration.Some are already preparing to push current leadership at the Department of Homeland Security to take steps to stymie the incoming Trump team, particularly on immigrant detention and the use of AI in enforcement.“We should expect to see the devastation of immigrant communities all over the country. We should expect to see family separation,” said Kica Matos, the president of the National Immigration Law Center. “It is entirely possible that he will try to use the military to carry out deportations, so that means that Americans all over the country will see the military engaging in enforcement against civilian populations, which is horrifying.”Trump, after winning a historic victory on a platform of turbo-charged immigration enforcement, has said he will conduct mass deportations at a scale never before seen. Immigrant advocates have warned this would be expensive and inhumane, separating families and wrecking communities. The president-elect has also vowed to build huge detention camps, hire thousands more border agents, funnel military spending toward border security and invoke the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 to expel suspected members of drug cartels and criminal gangs without court hearings.He has also said he would end “catch-and-release” — allowing migrants to remain free, often with monitoring, while they await immigration court hearings — and restore a policy from his first term requiring asylum seekers to remain in Mexico while their cases are processed. And he has dodged questions about whether he would try to bring back family separation.

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