Dwight D. Eisenhower: Perfect Security
on Friday, February 4, 2011Dwight D. Eisenhower Money Quotation saying belief in the unattainable fantasy of perfect security will lead any nation to completely emptying their treasury to prevent war. Dwight D. Eisenhower said:
“We will bankrupt ourselves in the vain search for absolute security” — Dwight D. Eisenhower
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In this quote, Dwight D. Eisenhower is warning against the futility and high economic costs of pursuing an impossible goal of “absolute security” through military or defense means alone.
His interpretation is that nations can bankrupt themselves financially and exhaust resources if they try to attain perfect safety and protection from all threats through an endless arms race and arms buildup.
Eisenhower seems to be suggesting that total security is unattainable, so focusing defense policy and spending on its vain achievement is misguided.
The underlying message of the quote appears to be that seeking absolute security through military dominance is not realistic or sustainable, and risks undermining a country through the immense costs involved in the endless search.