Every war we choose to fight costs us. The cost can be much greater than the benefit. We may then erroneously conclude that peacetime brings prosperity. But that conclusion would also be false. War has an economic burden that must be weighed against the future benefits that the war may bring. War destroys capital that has been accumulated through prior economic activity. The true purpose of war, however, is not to destroy prior economic activity, but to gain from it. Defence economics is an area of national defence that concerns itself with the economic costs and benefits of military expenditure. This encompasses … Continue reading Economic cost and benefits of war