I may be way off base here, but this is how I see it.
Compared to Europe, the United States has spent the most on military spending since World War Two. American taxpayers, like me, paid for that military. The U.S. built the mightiest military in the world, in part, to help defend countries like France and Germany from the Soviet Union.
Imagine how much greater the U.S. would be if we had used that money in other ways? Yes, perhaps that spending helped the country economically and we wouldn’t be a greater country, but I’m not sure. I don’t think anyone could be sure. Perhaps we could have spent the money on better social services, or better education.
Perhaps Social Security would be in better shape now. So I paid taxes to defend Europe. Most Europeans have a pretty comfortable retirement because their governments can afford it, mainly because they don’t have to spend money on defense. The U.S. has that covered.
Because I helped pay for the defense of Europe, Europeans get to enjoy a comfortable, retirement while I have to sweat whether I’ll be eating cat food in my golden years.
Imagine how you would feel if you were a WW2 vet who helped liberate Europe, but now can’t afford prescription drugs, while the French get free medical care for life. It just doesn’t seem right.