A nation without the ability to produce goods (not to mention weapons) has to choose its wars carefully:
Despite a six-year effort to build trusted computer chips for military systems, the Pentagon now manufactures in secure facilities run by American companies only about 2 percent of the more than $3.5 billion of integrated circuits bought annually for use in military gear.
That shortfall is viewed with concern by current and former United States military and intelligence agency executives who argue that the menace of so-called Trojan horses hidden in equipment circuitry is among the most severe threats the nation faces in the event of a war in which communications and weaponry rely on computer technology.
The Trojan horse problem is significant but I’m more troubled by our inability to produce the goods in the first place. You can’t fight an enemy if they are your sole source of weaponry and communications equipment or if the bulk of your manufacturing capability is located on their doorstep.
