Why doesn't America have an "iron dome"?

[kentuck]

Before the do-nothing Congress skipped town, they appropriated hundreds of millions of dollars to build up and support Israel's so-called "Iron Dome". Supposedly, this makes it very difficult to hit Israel from the air with rockets or missiles.

How can we spend money on any country to make them more secure than our own country? Does that make sense?

[el_bryanto]

1. We might be better of spending our money on a Thunder Dome.

You never know.

It's frustrating how narrow the parameters of debate in Washington are over Israel. Basically you either want to give Israel more money for their defense or your opinion turns out not to matter.

Bryant

[DetlefK]

2. Nope, a Thunder Dome would be a public project and you can't spend money on that.

Unless some donor proftis from it.

[el_bryanto]

5. We could go the same route as they do to get a football stadium

Some corporation purchases the naming rights then bullies the state into building the stadium largely with Government Money.

So something like the Walgreens Thunder Dome.

Bryant

[tammywammy]

3. We do have air & missile defense systems

Patriot, THAAD, Aegis, etc.

[MineralMan]

4. Because we have nobody on our borders firing unguided rockets

at us? We don't need anything like that Iron Dome system. We have some anti-missile defenses that cost far too much money, and nobody's threatening us with missiles, either.

Better we should spend money fixing our infrastructure and creating jobs, it seems to me.

[n2doc]

6. Because they don't work

And as noted above, we have several. Going back to Reagan's "Star Wars" boondoggles.

[bemildred]

7. +1. Stage props, is what they are, mostly.

And very expensive ones too.

[rurallib]

8. Ronnie Reagan's great fantasy

just like life was a movie script.

[unblock]

9. everything republicans do is a fraud, so their idea of protection is a con dome.

[TexasProgresive]

12. OHHH a giant condom would be as effective!

[Spider Jerusalem]

10. Because...

the Native Americans were dispossessed and pacified long before the advent of missile technology and no-one is firing rockets into the US from Juarez, or Vancouver?

And Iron Dome is not very effective, apparently:

http://blogs.reuters.com/great-debate/2014/07/25/israels-iron-dome-is-more-like-an-iron-sieve/

[gordianot]

11. In America the terrorist have an Iron Dome called Fox News supported by Republican scum.

The terrorist in the USA are mostly white claim some Christian affiliation and have representation in Congress. They even have their own news propaganda apparatus run owned by an International foreign terrorist Rupert Murdoch. As a protected class this Iron Dome is in place largely for corporate person hood as long as they do not kill police.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

13. Because they don't work against nuclear missiles

And we don't have anybody from Canada, Mexico, or Cuba firing short range unguided missiles against us.

[oberliner]

14. Wasn't that Reagan's idea?

SDI, aka Star Wars.