President Bush has requested 67% of the 2008 national budget to be spent on military and security. That’s 717 billion dollars out of your income tax into the war that 70% of the United States disapprove.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/budget/fy2008/budget.html
http://www.defenselink.mil/comptroller/defbudget/fy2008/
http://www.globalsecurity.org/intell/library/budget/index.html
http://www.thebudgetgraph.com/

How ridiculous is that while we are unwillingly paying for the war, we had to then trick the military into giving our money back into research and technology that will improve our life? (Such as cheaper solar panels, better medical equipment, artificial intelligence)

Thus our first and foremost priority is to stop this trend of militarization of the national budget. Imagine how much technological advancement would be happening now if all that military money went into education and research directly.

However in the mean while there are still ways to go around it:

Non-military funding from institutions:

A professor’s personal experience:

This is a detail and non-judgmental story explaining the slippery slope of getting military funding for research.
http://www.cs.utexas.edu/~kuipers/opinions/no-military-funding.html

National Science Foundation
http://www.nsf.gov/funding/

NASA
http://www.nasa.gov/home/index.html

National Institutes of Health
http://grants.nih.gov/grants/oer.htm

Hertz Foundation
http://www.hertzfoundation.org/

Gates Foundation
http://www.gatesfoundation.org/default.htm

A list of more than a hundred graduate school fellowships, most of which are non-military related
http://www.lib.msu.edu/harris23/grants/3gradinf.htm

 International Funding Index
A more general list of all funding around the world
http://sciencecareers.sciencemag.org/career_development/previous_issues/articles/2005_11_04/grantsnet_international_funding_index

Non-military funding from businesses:

How to start a startup
http://www.paulgraham.com/start.html

A Directories of Angel Investors (a rich person who trusts and funds your worl and passion)
http://www.inc.com/articles/2001/09/23461.html

A Tutorial on Angel Investors
http://www.angelcapitaleducation.org/dir_resources/for_entrepreneurs.aspx

North America's professional alliance of angel groups
http://www.angelcapitalassociation.org/default.aspx

The Funded: Entrepreneur resource and review of venture capital firms
http://www.thefunded.com/

Directory of venture capital firms, angel investors, sample business plans
http://www.vfinance.com/

National  Venture Capital Association
http://www.nvca.org/

Cooperatives:

Stories of entrepreneurs:
Stephen Wolfram On Starting a Long-Term Company
http://www.stephenwolfram.com/publications/talks/ycombinatorschool/

15 Successful Entrepreneurs Who Didn’t Need College
http://www.college-startup.com/college/15-successful-entrepreneurs-who-didnt-need-college/

More college dropouts
http://specials.rediff.com/money/2005/sep/15sld1.htm
http://www.pennylicious.com/2006/10/09/billionaire-dropouts/

Final words:
But most importantly we need to ur

What people don’t realize is that we can use the system as much as the system uses us. The more we rely on the government, the corporation, the academia to take care of us, the more power they have over us.

On the other hand, the more we are independent as an individual and interdependent with each other, the less power the system has over us.

Therefore the way to peacefully fight against the governments overarching power is to take action in yourself. Voice your opinion. Talk to your neighbors. Be active with local government. Build your own network of talented, trusted and motivated people. Organize a rally. Organize a fundraiser. Invest in your community. Support local entrepreneur. Invest in socially conscious business. Become an entrepreneur. Take care yourself. Take care your family. Take care your friends.