Progressive Ponderings: War as Policy
by Joe Mayer
About war, the Bush administration has been truthful. When they spoke of "unending war," "perpetual war," and "50 year war" their policies guarantee the United States will have perpetual enemies. The neo-conservative economic and military policies impose an agenda of class warfare, fiscal irresponsibility, government intrusion, and denial of civil and human rights on democracy, economic justice, and on the environment. Any dissenters – you're with us or against us – domestic or foreign, are labeled soft on terror or worse, terrorists. Thus, terrorism is their friend, their excuse, the hated enemy, the source of fear that they use to keep the fearful in line.
"First victory, then peace" has been used for 5,000 years to advance imperialism, to exploit people and the earth to benefit the few. The history of the Western world – we label ourselves 1st World – indicates that we are so intent on preserving our imperial privilege that we cannot respond to crisis in any other way than by violence. What we teach as American History is mainly a record of who kills, bombs, imprisons, tortures, oppresses, brutalizes, overthrows, destroys, controls, enslaves, rapes, occupies, or exploits whom. As history indicates, we spend extraordinary portions of our tax dollars to increase the efficiency to kill and conquer.
The world spends more than $2 billion per day on military expenditures. The result - poverty and disease increase, the environment deteriorates, wealth benefits the top of society, hate and fear multiply, and the elite request more arms. Wars killed over 200 million people in the 20th Century. The wounded, mentally and physically, were probably four times that number. Cities were destroyed, refugees were legion, economies were demolished, and the wealth of the earth was used to ravage life. Yet the imperialists increase the military budget, develop new nukes, and militarize space.
The "peace dividend" after the fall of Communism and the Soviet Union never occurred. The military/ industrial/ congressional complex adopted terrorism to fill the gap that was created. Peasants attempting to pursue a more just economic policy who were previously called communists are now easily labeled terrorists. Leftist leaders, formerly labeled communists, now easily become terrorists – with the exception of Fidel who continues to be called Communist. In order to get taxpayers to pay the bill and allow their children to be sent off to war, monster threats are continuously placed before them. Bush has even placed the Iraq war tab on our children and grandchildren. For this the Taxpayers' League has canonized him.
"War as policy" is entrenched in our psyche and our economy. Our leaders have convinced us that their elite interest is the national interest. They've convinced the Religious Right that war, leading to Armageddon, is the path to God. They've placed military bases or military industries in every Congressional district to be sure that every Senator and Congressperson would feel the effects of military spending cuts. They've convinced us that the world needs 40 soldiers for every 1,000 people but only one doctor for the same number, that war is the only legitimate response to terror, that weapons are much more important than education and health. They "honor" our veterans but cut their benefits.
"War as policy" advances fear in the world, but rage also is building – rage against the U.S. environmental policy, against trade policies that exploit, against U.S. refusal to cooperate in UN policies and the World Court, against the U.S. use of debt as a weapon against Third World countries, against U.S. military bases in nearly three quarters of the countries of the world, and against the U.S. hypocritical stance regarding nuclear weapons.
"First justice, then peace" would attempt to correct the above abuses. Politicians could campaign on a platform of cooperation and not be called "girly-man." A U.S. practicing justice instead of exploitation would reduce the causes of terrorism. A U.S. military budget only for "defense", not imperialistic world control, would allow money for our domestic needs. A president seeking the common good would not need to continually deceive the American people. A Congress practicing true democracy would not court reelection money with every vote.
Violence breeds violence. Justice breeds justice. Hate breeds hate. Love breeds love. We all know these maxims to be true in our private lives. Why should life among nations, among races, among nationalities be different? "Justice as policy" was written into our founding documents years ago. It's time to finally practice it.
We just rebuked the war in Iraq, though little was said by winning candidates of rebuking "war as policy." Much work is ahead to build the story so that "justice first, then peace" becomes the mantra for political candidates.
About war, the Bush administration has been truthful. When they spoke of "unending war," "perpetual war," and "50 year war" their policies guarantee the United States will have perpetual enemies. The neo-conservative economic and military policies impose an agenda of class warfare, fiscal irresponsibility, government intrusion, and denial of civil and human rights on democracy, economic justice, and on the environment. Any dissenters – you're with us or against us – domestic or foreign, are labeled soft on terror or worse, terrorists. Thus, terrorism is their friend, their excuse, the hated enemy, the source of fear that they use to keep the fearful in line.
"First victory, then peace" has been used for 5,000 years to advance imperialism, to exploit people and the earth to benefit the few. The history of the Western world – we label ourselves 1st World – indicates that we are so intent on preserving our imperial privilege that we cannot respond to crisis in any other way than by violence. What we teach as American History is mainly a record of who kills, bombs, imprisons, tortures, oppresses, brutalizes, overthrows, destroys, controls, enslaves, rapes, occupies, or exploits whom. As history indicates, we spend extraordinary portions of our tax dollars to increase the efficiency to kill and conquer.
The world spends more than $2 billion per day on military expenditures. The result - poverty and disease increase, the environment deteriorates, wealth benefits the top of society, hate and fear multiply, and the elite request more arms. Wars killed over 200 million people in the 20th Century. The wounded, mentally and physically, were probably four times that number. Cities were destroyed, refugees were legion, economies were demolished, and the wealth of the earth was used to ravage life. Yet the imperialists increase the military budget, develop new nukes, and militarize space.
The "peace dividend" after the fall of Communism and the Soviet Union never occurred. The military/ industrial/ congressional complex adopted terrorism to fill the gap that was created. Peasants attempting to pursue a more just economic policy who were previously called communists are now easily labeled terrorists. Leftist leaders, formerly labeled communists, now easily become terrorists – with the exception of Fidel who continues to be called Communist. In order to get taxpayers to pay the bill and allow their children to be sent off to war, monster threats are continuously placed before them. Bush has even placed the Iraq war tab on our children and grandchildren. For this the Taxpayers' League has canonized him.
"War as policy" is entrenched in our psyche and our economy. Our leaders have convinced us that their elite interest is the national interest. They've convinced the Religious Right that war, leading to Armageddon, is the path to God. They've placed military bases or military industries in every Congressional district to be sure that every Senator and Congressperson would feel the effects of military spending cuts. They've convinced us that the world needs 40 soldiers for every 1,000 people but only one doctor for the same number, that war is the only legitimate response to terror, that weapons are much more important than education and health. They "honor" our veterans but cut their benefits.
"War as policy" advances fear in the world, but rage also is building – rage against the U.S. environmental policy, against trade policies that exploit, against U.S. refusal to cooperate in UN policies and the World Court, against the U.S. use of debt as a weapon against Third World countries, against U.S. military bases in nearly three quarters of the countries of the world, and against the U.S. hypocritical stance regarding nuclear weapons.
"First justice, then peace" would attempt to correct the above abuses. Politicians could campaign on a platform of cooperation and not be called "girly-man." A U.S. practicing justice instead of exploitation would reduce the causes of terrorism. A U.S. military budget only for "defense", not imperialistic world control, would allow money for our domestic needs. A president seeking the common good would not need to continually deceive the American people. A Congress practicing true democracy would not court reelection money with every vote.
Violence breeds violence. Justice breeds justice. Hate breeds hate. Love breeds love. We all know these maxims to be true in our private lives. Why should life among nations, among races, among nationalities be different? "Justice as policy" was written into our founding documents years ago. It's time to finally practice it.
We just rebuked the war in Iraq, though little was said by winning candidates of rebuking "war as policy." Much work is ahead to build the story so that "justice first, then peace" becomes the mantra for political candidates.
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