Februaiy 13. 2008
Page A4
Opinion articles do not necessarily reflect or represent the views o f The Portland Observer
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Defense Budget is Our Real Enemy:
When all your taxes go for guns
BY
VV 11 I 1AM A. COI.I.ISS
The United States is not the first nation
to spend itse lf into m ilita ry o b livio n .
The Soviet U nion did ju st that a couple
decades ago. O f course, the U.S. was the
m otivating cause, menacing the Soviets
into their foolishness.
Our own m ilitary buildup purposely
played into the hands o f Russian munitions
bureaucrats whose personal empires de
pended on producing more war machinery.
ways often mentioned in the press. And
internationally it makes other nations fear
fu l and angry about how we m ight use all
that power.
Today some concerned fo lk take com
fort from the fact that our current aggres
sive political dynasty may come to an end
next January. Surely that w ould be w orth
duction.
So now, w e're in the fix o f w hich Presi
dent D w ight Eisenhower once warned.
W hile ruling the waves m ilita rily , we're
sinking beneath them financially.
China is smarter. It's not bloating its
army. Rather it is putting its e ffo rt into
economic development, threatening one
day to make the U.S. a commercial backwa
ter. India is follow f i g suit.
M eanw hile our tax money keeps sub
marine workers happy locally and inves
tors happy everywhere. Thus is "N ational
S ecurity" perverted fo r p ro fit, w hile real
security withers in want.
William A. Collins is a former slate
representative and a former mayor o f
Norwalk, Conn.
cheering. We may not start any more wars
fo ra while.
But that other pi lia r o f the defense bud
While ruling the waves militarily,
we're sinking beneath them financially.
Various European countries have his
torically fallen into a sim ilar armaments
trap, from the Crusades to the Spanish
Armada to Napoleon to H itler.
Now it's our turn. Not only is the United
Statesconducting a ruinous shooting war.
but it still sustains a ruinous weapons
budget larded on top o f that conflict.
O ur 2005 spending (the war is only
partially included) was $518 b illio n . The
next biggest spender was China at $81
b illio n . Othernationsdisbursed much less.
In fact, the United States paid out about as
much fo r its m ilita ry as all other countries
combined.
The dangers o f this policy are plain
enough. For one thing, it causes a huge
deficit, thus cheapening the dollar. You
may have noticed. It also starves c iv ilia n
services, thus weakening our society in
get - The m ilitary-industrial complex - has
no intention o f pu llin g in its horns. It did
just fine under B ill C lin to n and feels no
concern that the current crop o f tim id
Democrats w ill do anything to trim its
sails.
Every weapon, from aircraft carriers,
tanks, transports, bom bers, m issiles,
nukes, bullets , the w hole arsenal, has its
own set o f champions in the form o f cor
porations, workers, subcontractors, banks,
stores, media and Congress members.
These lobbyists are often more fervent
than the Joint Chiefs o f Staff.
And even the top Pentagon brass some
times gets trapped. H aving persuaded
Congress to fund a new weapon, what do
you do y ears later when it's out o f date? By
then it has its own pow erful constituency
that’s deeply invested in continued pro
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PORTLAND,OREGON
Making Cruel Punishment Less Cruel
The National Urban League has always
opposed the death penalty because it tends
to disproportionately affect blacks, who are
Tinkering with the
machinery of death
by M arc
II. M okial
Earlier this month, the U.S. Supreme
Court granted a stay o f execution to an
Alabam a prisoner w h ile it determines
whether the procedure o f lethal injection
violates the Eighth Amendment, w hich
forbids cruel and unusual punishment.
Used by nearly all states w ith death penalties, the
procedure requires the use o f three different chem i
cals in sequence - 1 ) an anesthetic to numb the body;
2) a chemical to paralyze muscles
and stop breathing; and 3) a chem i
cal to stop the heartbeat. Im proper
ad m in istra tio n o f the anesthetic
could result in a very painful expe
rience, one you w o u ld n 't wish on
your worst enemies.
In a 2006 e ditorial, headlined,
“ Lethal C ru e lty," the New Y ork
Tim es concluded that when poorly
administered, lethal injection, con
sidered by some to be more humane
than the electric chair, “ can in fact be particularly
If our nation is going to legalize
an act as inhumane as execution,
we, at the very least, owe it to the
condemned to make it as humane
as possible.
barbaric."
Because lethal injection appears to be a medical
procedure, it is a method o f execution is perceived to
be humane. When it is administered properly, it is
humane. But when i t ’ s not administered properly, it
most certainly is not.
“ The idea o f a ‘ humane execution’ is a contradic
tion in term s." observed Jamie Fellner, senior counsel
at Human Rights Watch. "B u t i f states are going to
put people to death, they must choose the drugs and
methods that carry the least risk o f pain and suffering
for the condemned.”
i " e i ' j ?,*
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Concordia University Choral Ensembles &
Pastor Derrick Traylor and JEREMIAH
Benefiting Rehoboth W orld Healing Center
{ Saturday, February 2 3 , 7pm }
St. Michaels Lutheran Church: 6700 NE 29th Ave
Portland OR 97211
Donations Appreciated
800-321-9371
I
I
503-280-8501
I
www.cu-portland
Marc H. Morial is president and chief executive
officer o f the National Urban League.
- Invited Guests ~
Jefferson High School Seniors
A Celebration of African-American Music
----
.1__ 1
I fo u r nation is going to legalize an act as inhumane
as execution, we, at the very least, owe it to the
condemned to make it as humane as possible.
Justice Harry Blackmun, once famously proclaimed
that " I no longer shall tinker w ith the m achinery o f
death." The National Urban League agrees, espe
c ia lly i f it entails senseless suffering. That is w hy we
very strongly urge the justices to see it B lackm un's
way later this year when a fin a l ru lin g comes down.
We are supposed to be a nation o f civilize d , con
cerned and humane citizens, not a nation o f savages.
Youth Summit
Building Bridges, Breaking Barriers
k .;
Uÿ
less able to afford adequate representation
when accused o f running afoul w ith the law.
From 1976 to 2007, over one-third o f executed
death row inmates were black.
In 2006, according to Am nesty Interna
tional, the U nited States ranked sixth in the
w o rld in terms o f execution count — behind
China, Pakistan, Iran, Iraq and Sudan. T hat’ s very
interesting company to keep, especially fo r a nation
that prides itse lf in being the w o rld 's greatest democ
racy and beacon o f freedom.
Key noie Speaker:
Judge Greg Mathis
Principal and Supporter:
Dr. C ynthia Harris
and the Jefferson High School
Faculty and Parents
Hosted By:
Cornerstone Community Services, March 15, 2008, Lloyd Center Double Tree Hotel
Job Fair-C areer Opportunities 5 - 6 p.m.
Banquet 6:15 p.m.
C orner Stone C om m unity Services
2216 NE Killingsworth St.
Portland, Oregon 97211
(503) 281-4587
Donations Accepted
$ I OO.(X) per person or $ 1,000.00 per table
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