We must never let the weight of this combination endanger our liberties or democratic processes. We should take nothing for granted. Only an alert and knowledgeable citizenry can compel the proper meshing of the huge industrial and military machinery of defense with our peaceful methods and goals, so that security and liberty may prosper together".
-We were warned by a General and President that the conditions for "unwarranted influence" was afoot.
It's time we exercised our collective power to reclaim our democracy through peaceful means. But how?
I think that Eisenhower warned against the military industrial complex, as well as disbanding union, lowering taxes, etc., because he saw these things, via their ability to decentralize power, as defenses against oppression and tyranny. Its ironic that today's conservative rails against concentration of government power but encourages concentration of corporate power. I have yet to see any conservative thinker address this point.
Seriously. I don't understand what is inherently noble or good about corporate power. Look at Comcast for example, it doesn't provide an amazing service. It doesn't exist because it is that good. It exists because it is powerful and is big enough to fend off competition. I see a lot of small businesses being an expression of ingenuity and enterprise, I see a lot of large ones as an expression of bureaucracy and bloat.
BTW, rereading the post that you replied to, I can't help but posit that maybe the problem is that "conservative thinker" has become a complete oxymoron.
When the conservatives began to build their base around social issues, the whole country lost.