The Pentagon was built as a State Department for Cold War Soviet containment and now represents 36% of global R&D spending, but this massive legacy institution is structurally obsolete for current geopolitical challenges and its very organizational weight prevents adaptation.

factualpending

Speaker

Stephen Kotkin

Evidence Quote

36% of global R&D was the Pentagon in 1960...you have this gigantic organization that trips over itself...its success...has now become an unbelievable vulnerability

Source

STEPHEN KOTKIN - THE WORLD IN PIECESIWMVienna
Created: 8/12/2026, 6:16:53 PM

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