From: James Thompson (Thompsonj@higgslaw.com)
Date: Sat Sep 14 2002 - 14:50:59 MDT
There has been a lot of debate over Saddam and terrorism and the threat
they pose to our security. Please take the time to read this short
summary on an entirely different approach to the situation and perhaps
we can turn the tide of the current perceptual conflicts which seem to
be only hindering us. I think that the whole discussion over whether or
not to remove Saddam is not only quite irrelevant in the long run, but
also the product of a self-defeating dillusion being initially
propagated by those that wish to manipulate the minds of the public in
order to further their own agenda. If you cut off the top of a weed,
it will inevitably grow back. If we want real security, why not address
the roots of the problem? What social, political, or economic factors
allow such a man to rise to that level of power? In the aftermath of
the Cold War, it should have become clear to citizens everywhere that it
is not the march of armies that is the clearest threat to peace and
stability but rather the disaster of pervasive resource loss, refugees
who are forced across borders, and social instability that makes war
primarily an action within, rather than between states. Global leaders
and citizens must find a new sense of mission and destiny, and must
reclaim the security terminology from war-making institutions. Social,
economic, and environmental stresses and pressures on societies
worldwide call for a new definition of security, and hence for a new set
of priorities. Poverty, unequal distribution of land, and the
degradation of ecosystems are among the most pressing issues undermining
security. Soldiers and tanks are at best irrelevant and at worst an
obstacle to solving problems. An understanding of security that fits
today's world will require a shift from conflicts of national security
to cooperation for global security. Instead of defense of the status
quo, sustainable security calls for change and adaption; instead of
"green-helmet" intervention forces, we will need to transform war-making
institutions, and create new priorities for sustainable development.
- veridicus
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