Jlortlaitó Oftbseruer
Page 12
October 13, 2010
Opinion articles do not necessarily represent the views o f the
Portland Observer We welcome reader essays, photos and
story ideas. Submit to news@portlandobserver.com.
We Need More Jobs, Less War
Use the money
for economic
transition
J ohn F effer
and M iriam P emberton
by
After the end o f the Cold W ar, we feature o f its original stim ulus relu ctan t to be seen as anti-job. tran sitio n now , those w orkers
could have redirected Pentagon p a c k a g e a n d a lso c re a te d a T he pro m ise o f green jo b s has a w ill be A m ericans. I f w e lose
funds for research in and the de "green jo b s czar." But so far the hard tim e com peting w ith the this ch an ce to reap a green d iv i
velopm ent o f new energy sources, U nited States has only pursued reality o f existing m ilitary jo b s.
dend, the U nited States w on't be
and building an environm entally half-m easures. T hat's w h y w e
T he only w ay to cash in on our a p ro d u ctiv e p art o f the new
sustainable m anufacturing base. continue to face both a jo b s cri green d iv id en d is to focus on global g reen econom y. W e w ill
But we failed to capitalize on this sis and a clim ate crisis.
jo b s. It's the only w ay to co n only be consum ers. O ur u n em
"peace dividend." Instead, from
T he "obvious solution" is not v in ce w orkers, m anufacturers, p lo y m en t rate w ill rem ain u n ac
the m id-1990s to today, we doubled so obvious to d efen se contrac- and p o litician s to back red u c cep tab ly high.
T he G reat R ecession m ay be
officially over but the U nited
States is stuck in a prolonged
econom ic crisis, with joblessness
h o v e rin g a ro u n d 10 p ercen t.
M illions o f unem ployed and un
d erem ployed A m ericans are fed
up. T hey w ant jobs. But m any
law m akers are reluctant to in
vest m ore revenue in jo b cre
ation because o f concerns over
the national debt.
O u r c o u n try also faces an
im m ense energy and en v iro n
m ental challenge. W e need to
retool our econom y so that we
co n su m e less energy, produce
less carbon em issions, and can
co m p ete in new global green
m an u facturing. A ll o f this also
req u ires a lot o f m oney.
Fortunately, the governm ent
is sitting on a pile o f m oney that
co u ld be used to create jo b s and
retool our econom y w ithout ad d
ing to the debt. W e continue to
spend m ore than $700 billion a
y e ar on building w eapons w e
don't need, fighting w ars that
aren't necessary, and m ain tain
ing a b loated Pentagon bu reau
cracy. P entagon c h ie f R obert
G ates w ants to reduce m ilitary
spending - but only to shift those
savings tow ard yet m ore w eap
ons and w ar-m aking.
It seem s obvious. W e should
cut the m ilitary budget and use
that m oney to fund our econom ic military spending.
transition, creating millions ofnew
N ow w e face a second o p
jobs. Studies show that investing a portunity. This tim e a "green divi
bi 1 lion dol lars in the green economy dend" is w ithin reach. Both C hina
generates far m ore jo b s than in and South K orea, tw o countries
vesting the sam e am ount in the w ith very different political and
m ilitary econom y.
econom ic system s, have backed
O bvious ideas are not, how green grow th. T he O bam a a d
ever, alw ays politically feasible. m inistration m ade such funds a
^''P ortland(D bseruer
Established 1970
USPS 5 5 9 6 8 0
47 47 NE Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd., Portland, OR 97211
tors w orried ab o u t losing P en ta
gon con tracts--an d u nions and
w orkers w orried about losing the
nation's rem ain in g m an u factu r
ing, m ining, and oil industryjobs-
-all in exch an g e fo r the pro m ise
o f a different kind o f industry.
Politicians w ho m ight o rdinarily
back the "obvious solution" are
tions in P entagon spending and a
green stim ulus package. In o u r
G reen D ividend report, w e illu s
trate how the U nited States can,
co m m u n ity by com m unity, shift
from m ilitary jo b s to green jo b s.
W orkers now producing m ilitary
en g in es w ill one day produce
w indm ill turbines. If w e plan this
W e struck out w ith the peace
dividend. W e are on the verge o f
striking out on the green d iv i
dend. W e p ro b ab ly w on't get a
third chance.
Miriam Pemberton and
John Feffer are representa
tives o f the Institute fo r
Policy Studies.
The Portland Observer welcomes freelance submissions. Manuscripts and photographs should be clearly labeled and will be returned if accompan.ed by a self addressed envelope.
All created design display ads become the sole property of the newspaper and cannot be used in other publications or personal usage without the written consent o f the general
manager, unless the client has purchased the composition of such ad. O 2008 THE PORTLAND OBSERVER ALL RIGHTS RESERVED, REPRODUCTION IN WHOLE OR
IN PART WITHOUT PERMISSION IS PROHIBITED The Portland Observer-Oregon’s Oldest Multicultural Publication-« a member of the National Newspaper Association-
-Founded in 1885, and The National Advertising Representative Amalgamated Publishers, Inc, New York, NY, and The West Coast Black Publishers Association
Charles H. Washington
E d it o r : M ic h a e l L e ig h to n
D is t r ib u t io n M a n a g e r : M a rk W a sh in g to n
C r e a tiv e D ir e c t o r : P a u l N e u fe ld t
E d ito r - in -C h ie f , P ublisher :
news@jiQrtlandQbserver.cQm
CALL 503-288-0033 FAX 503-288-0015
ads@jwrtlandobserver, com
subscription@Dortlandobserver.com
P ostmaster : Send address changes to Portland Observer, PO Box3137, Portland. 0 R 9 7 2 0 8