October 15, 2014
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Countering the
emphasis on
militarization
by G len G ersmehl
President Obama's speech on
dealing with ISIL - the violent Is
lamic movement in Syria, Iraq, and
elsewhere - was front page news.
Headlines quoted Obama’s asser
tion that “we will degrade, and ulti
mately destroy ISIL.” Now Con
gress is backing him.
The president’s military focus
echoes our nation’s accustomed
response in numerous situations
deemed threatening: from the coups
we engineered in Iran in 1953, Gua
temala in 1954, the Vietnam War, to
Nicaragua in the 80s, and war in
Afghanistan and Iraq.
That few experts consider any of
these violent responses “success
ful” should encourage skepticism
regarding a new campaign that is
almost entirely military focused.
It’s time for fresh perspectives
and alternatives. Here’s a start:
A few weeks after 9-11, in a major
foreign policy address at the Naval
Academy, President George W.
Bush asserted there are three pillars
to US security: Defense, Diplomacy,
and Development.
Now imagine sitting on a three-
legged stool with one leg roughly
the size of a baseball bat - that’s
defense - and each of the other two
legs the size of a pencil! Yes, de
fense receives 50 times as much
funding as either diplomacy or de
velopment. Sadly, this imbalance
undermines how effectively we can
respond to conflict.
W e’ve spent $2 trillion on war in
Afghanistan and Iraq, offering a
small percent of that as building
roads, schools, and hospitals -
“Development” activities.
What if from the beginning, we
had worked with other countries to
focus on underlying issues like
poverty, ethnic conflicts, govern
m ent c o rru p tio n ... w hile also
strengthening underdeveloped in
ternational institutions?
There are also untapped insights
from nonviolent movements that
include and go beyond diplomatic
and development strategies. Unfor
tunately for many people, “nonvio
lence” is caught in crippling stereo
types - that it is weak, passive, and
ineffective.
The truth is nonviolent m ove
ments have been more successful
in more places than m ilitary force.
T hey ’ve been effective against
ruthless regim es like apartheid in
South Africa, M arcos in the Phil
ippines, the widespread Velvet
Revolution in Eastern and Central
Europe, the Nazis in Denmark and
Norway, to name a few. Why has
the most effective response to
violent opponents been absent
from public debate on ISIL?
In fact, the tradition o f nonvio
lence offers very useful insights
to counter the tendency to em
p h a size m ilita ry o p tio n s and
downplay diplom atic and devel
opm ent strategies.
Nonviolence encourages us to
seek to interrupt, not feed the cycle
o f violence. Recognize that m ili
tary responses more often than
not backfire, often provoking a
c o u n te rp ro d u c tiv e v io len t re
sponse. Nonviolent m ovem ents
in contrast are grounded in re
spect for the opponent while or
ganizing large num bers o f people
to withdraw support for and resist
violent behavior.
Nonviolence encourages us to
limit the ability of terrorists or dicta
tors to obtain arms, recruit adher
ents, or rally citizens whose real
interest is throwing off their shack
les, not defending their oppressors.
And nonviolence m eans we
must understand that political lead
ers derive their power from the
people and there are more ways
for nonviolent movements to with
draw that pow er than for leaders
to com m and it.
There is also significant overlap
between developm ent strategies
and what nonviolent movements
emphasize to achieve what military
action cannot seek broad interna
tional support and strengthen inter
national institutions to work for
large-scale, sustainable, enduring
change that prevents violence by
addressing root causes.
Such insights have undergirded
effective movements around the
globe and throughout history. They
embody the practical as well as ethi
cal superiority of diplomacy, devel
opment, and nonviolence.
Americans are ready for change.
Campaign Nonviolence groups in
more than 200communities in every
state have stepped up with activi
ties bringing together and address
ing climate change, violent conflict,
and poverty!
The discussion regarding ISIL
urgently needs to be broadened to
include diplomatic, development
and nonviolence alternatives. We
owe it to the people of the Middle
East, and any soldiers we put into
harm ’s way, to work with other na
tions to plan and implement such
alternatives.
Glen Gersmehl serves as national
coordinator o f Lutheran Peace
Fellowship.
unni.....
High Moral and Economic Cost of Child Poverty
Destroying dreams, hopes and opportunities
by M arian
W right E delman
Just released U.S. Census
Bureau data reveal 45.3 million
people were poor in America in
2013. One in three of those who
are poor is a child. Children
remain our poorest age group
and children of color and those
under five are the poorest.
M ore than one in five infants,
------’
toddlers, and preschoolers were
poor during their years o f great-
est brain developm ent and vul-
nerability. Black children saw no
d™
and continue to have
the highest child poverty rates in
the nation. In 20 states m ore than
40 percent of black children were
poor and nearly one in five black
children were living in extrem e
poverty with an annual incom e of
less than half of the poverty level
or $33 a day for a fam ily of four,
A lthough the percentage o f
poor children dropped in 2013 for
t e first time since 2000, from 21.8
percent (16.1 m illion) in 2012 to
1 9 .9 percent (14.7 m illion), there
StlllL1 3 m illlon m ore P °or
children than in 2007 before the
recession began.
It is a m oral disgrace that child
poverty in the U.S. is higher than
children for life.
and increase productivity.
Child Poverty has huge eco
For exam ple, elim inating child
adult poverty, higher vere health problem s, and fare nom ic costs for the nation. Year
p o v erty betw een the p ren atal
than for children in worse than higher incom e chil- after year the lost productivity
years and age 5 would increase
almost all other com- dren with the same problem s. A and extra health and crim inal ju s
lifetime earnings between $53,000
petitor nations, and poor child with asthm a is more tice costs associated with it add and $ 100,000 per child, for a total
higher than our coun- likely to be reported in poor health, up to roughly half a trillion dol
lifetim e benefit o f $20 to $36 bil
try with the w orld’s spend more days in bed, and have lars, or 3.8 percent o f our nation’s lion for children born in a given
la r g e s t e c o n o m y m ore hospital episodes than a gross dom estic product. W hat we
year. W hen are we going to gain
should ever allow.
high-incom e child with asthma.
can never m easure though are the enough m oral, com m on and eco
W ealth and incom e inequality
Poor children suffer a 30 million countless innovations and d is
nom ic sense to treat our children
are stiU at record high levels and word interaction gap by age 3 and coveries and contributions that
ju stly and give all o f them a level
opportunity gaps are widening, are less likely to enter school ready
did not occur for our nation be playing field upon which to grow?
W hat values and priorities do to learn and to graduate from high
cause children’s potentials were
Children have only one child
these unjust realities reflect? Isn ’t school. One study found children
stunted by poverty.
hood
and it is today. Chilean Nobel
it tim e to reset our moral and eco- who were poor for half o f their
It does not have to be this way. laureate Gabriela Mistral said, “We
nom ic com pass? If we tvant to childhood were nearly 90 percent
Child poverty is not an act o f God. are guilty o f many errors and many
build a strong workforce, military, more likely to enter their 20s with-
It is the choices o f men and women faults, but our worst crime is aban
and econom y and ensure the m ost out com pleting high school than
and we can change it. Child pov doning the children, neglecting the
basic tenets of opportunity for never poor children,
erty can be ended and prevented fountain of life. Many of the things
the m ost vulnerable, we must and
Child poverty increases the risk if we want to.
we need can wait. The child cannot.
can end child poverty now.
o f unem ploym ent and econom ic
Poverty rates change over time Right now is the time his bones are
Poverty hurts children and de- hardship in adulthood. Those who
w ith th e e c o n o m y and w ith being formed, his blood is being
stroys their dream s, hopes, and experienced poverty at any point
changes in governm ent policies. made, and his senses are being de
opportunities. Poor children are during their childhood were more
The U.S. has made substantial veloped. To him we cannot answer
m orelikely to go hungry, which is than three tim es as likely to be
progress in reducing poverty over ‘Tomorrow.’ His name is today.”
associated with lower reading and poor at age 30 as those who were
the past 50 years despite worsen
Given that the U.S. has been
math scores, greater physical and neverpo o ras children. The longer
ing inequality and increased un blessed with great wealth and high
m ental health problem s, higher a child is poor, the greater the risk
e m p lo y m e n t. C h ild p o v e rty ideals which we need to live up to
incidence o f em otional and be- o f poverty in adulthood and expe-
dropped 36 percent between 1967 and given the high costs we incur
havioral problem s, and a greater riencing poverty as a child also
and 2012 when income from tax from child poverty every year, how
chance of obesity.
increases the likelihood o f life-
credits and in-kind benefits like can our country not act to end
pOOr children are less likely to long health problems and involve-
nutrition and housing assistance child poverty now?
have access to affordable quality ment in the crim inal justice sys-
are counted. Ending child pov
Marian Wright Edelman is Presi
health coverage, have m ore se- tern. Child poverty scars some
erty would save lives and money dent o f the Children 's Defense Fund.
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