Deepak To Barack: How To Convert To A Peace Economy
Michael Lerner’s Tikkun has published a letter from Deepak Chopra to President-elect Obama with the premise that if peace can’t make as much money as war, it doesn’t stand a chance. Here are some ways to ameliorate that situation:
1. Scale out arms dealing and make it illegal by the year 2020.
2. Write into every defense contract a requirement for a peacetime project.
3. Subsidize conversion of military companies to peaceful uses with tax incentives and direct funding.
4. Convert military bases to housing for the poor.
5. Phase out all foreign military bases.
6. Require military personnel to devote part of their time to rebuilding infrastructure.
7. Call a moratorium on future weapons technologies.
8. Reduce armaments like destroyers and submarines that have no use against terrorism and were intended to defend against a superpower enemy that no longer exists.
9. Fully fund social services and take the balance out of the defense and homeland security budgets.
We want peace (or so we claim), and we want the perception that we are a nation that promotes peace. But because, as Deepak says, “empire follows the dollar,” Obama must back up his vision of change with economic reality. This is something yet to be accomplished by any other president. Here is a chance to truly make history.
Individually, one can take a personal vow for non-violence in thoughts, speech and actions. Chopra has created this global movement in his role as President and Founder of the Alliance for a New Humanity.
#10: BLOW the livin $&(! out of your enemies, totally.
That way they won’t harrass or bomb YOU for 60 years!
AND: KEEP bombing them [sadam did it and the liberals thought it was OK]. LOL !
January 1st, 2009 at 12:58 pm
Oh wait: the Ruskies know how to make [PEACE] with terrorists ! Don’t they? Why don’t terrorists harrass Russia any more ?
CUZ THEY KILL THEM RIGHT NOW !!!!!
January 1st, 2009 at 1:00 pm
In other words, make ourselves MORE vulnerable to our enemies because we will be weak and they won’t. Brilliant idea.
January 1st, 2009 at 1:17 pm
Those are the nine most not thought out stupid ideas I have ever heard of. Nothing like making our country vulnerable to every rouge nation out there. How the heck are we to defend ourselves?
This guys ideas ought to be thrown out with the trash.
January 1st, 2009 at 1:23 pm
This really makes me angry. What arms dealing is he talking about? turn military bases into housing for the poor? LIke military families are rich? Phase out all foreign military bases? Yeah, stick our heads in the sand and pull the covers over our heads. Stop producing future weapons? So our enemies will have better protection, and the upper hand in any face off? Get rid of destroyers and submarines because the threat no longer exists?
let’s just bend over and kiss our butts goodbye if he takes advice from this fruitcake.
January 1st, 2009 at 1:26 pm
This fanatical war mongering is very depressing.
Peace for the new year!
January 1st, 2009 at 1:47 pm
As much as I don’t normally agree with you guys ( Willy, Blissful and Jerry ) I think your basic premise here is correct. Carry a BIG stick and all that.
Happy New Year.
January 1st, 2009 at 1:51 pm
Thanks Budda. Happy New Year.
January 1st, 2009 at 1:53 pm
TDRO,
It isn’t fanatical warmongering. It is called self preservation.
January 1st, 2009 at 1:58 pm
I say protect the U.S. first before we start random bombings.
Peace in the new year.
January 1st, 2009 at 2:04 pm
Does Dr. Chopra that China is building toward being a super power. That is if can’t be considered one right now.
And Russia certainly looks to be going back to some of its Cold War era ways, and if it makes the right alliances, like it appears be trying to with Hugo Chavez, they could become another more credible threat.
And let’s not forget about Iran. And what happens if Pakistan gets into the wrong hands?
While none of these are in and of themselves necessarily super powers, combined, they would be formidable.
I hope for peace, but I just don’t see it happening. Even if we led the way by slowing our military technology advancements and drawing down our forces, other countries and radical groups won’t back off their plans to harm us.
BTW, we already did that song and dance under Former President Clinton. The Cold War ended and he made drastic cuts to the military (bases both overseas and stateside, weapons, spending, and personnel) because there was “no more threat”. Despite our less aggressive posture, we were still attacked, multiple times.
We just can’t afford not to keep ahead militarily.
January 1st, 2009 at 2:31 pm
“Individually, one can take a personal vow for non violence in thoughts, speech and actions.”
We should all take a personal vow to think before opening our mouths, and to try to think in terms more profound than the bumper sticker baloney so many callers to the show often spout.
In fact, the next time we’re about to call someone an idiot, we should think about why.
January 1st, 2009 at 3:10 pm
Meanwhile, the Chinese are spending their new wealth on arming up. Spending money on a military expansion they certainly shouldn’t need. After all, who aren’t they friends with?
Life’s all about “balance”. Lift the pendulum too far to one side and the only thing you’ve guaranteed is a wider swing the other way.
Peace through holstered weapons.
January 1st, 2009 at 3:10 pm
Thx Budda,Happy New Year.
Blow the LIVING $#!+ out of people that have been bombing Israel for 60 years.[but don't hurt no trees or dogs].Let the Ruskies show them how.
Peace be with US; through absolute, all out,total annihilation of those that would bomb our world trade center. AND bomb Israel for 60 plus years.
Besides there is NO such thing as the [palistinian] people. They come from other countries !
January 1st, 2009 at 3:29 pm
I have to admit I respect Dr Chopra a great deal and I’m certainly a peace-loving person but this idea seems a bit crazy, even to me..
In a world filled with nations run by power-hungry despots and/or oppressive governments, suggesting that you’ll get rid of the big stick that prevents them from running amok is irrational to me.
January 1st, 2009 at 3:46 pm
Maybe following this ideaology would set us up for the predicted failure as laid out by the Russian who says the U.S. will crumble by 2010.
January 1st, 2009 at 4:25 pm
The islamic terrorists BEST friend = Deepak Chopra.
Thanks for the [help] deepak. LOL !
January 1st, 2009 at 4:49 pm
The islamic terrorists BEST friend = Bush, and his Saudi buddies.
Osama bin Ladin never had better friends, they carried out his wishes well, from speading fear to spending the treasury in Iraq.
Did he send a thank you card for abu Ghraib?
January 1st, 2009 at 5:06 pm
What a crock of new year’s hooey! As the principal in The Substitute said “Power perceived is power achieved.” I’m not sure if this guy is a U.S. Citizen but if not then someone please tell him to mind his own country’s military policies!
We all want peace, peace at home, peace within our borders, and peace abroad but we darn well need to as bugs bunny did… speak softly and carry a big stick.
January 1st, 2009 at 5:11 pm
Old, you are wrong about who the terrorist’s best friend is. First the left says bush is guilty of war crimes now you are saying he is best friends with the terrorists.
The left has a serious bi-polar problem.
January 1st, 2009 at 5:17 pm
# 4 and # 8 are things I do not personally support. The military bases of America are not the place the find for the impoverished. Churches and other government facilities can provide this. The weapons of the past are still part of the national defense as a whole. In the very unlikely event of a’ super power war’ these weapons would be vital in our survival.
Beyond this I am in agreement with Deepak Chopra on this 100%.
January 1st, 2009 at 9:32 pm
ERIC—If you just do #9, then all the others have to follow, except for #2 and #6. They would be impossible because of no funds for contracts or military personnel.
If DoD and DHS lose their funding, then #5, #7, #8 have to follow because their would be no funds to support them.
Then #1 would have to happen because there wouldn’t be any weapons with which to make deals.
#3 would have to happen because companies that deal in military contracts would go broke otherwise.
And since the bases would be empty, as there would be no money to pay for them or the troops, then the dorms and base housing might as well be used for #4 instead of just sitting there not being used.
While creating and promoting peace is a great goal, it can’t be accomplished by taking away the deterents of war. It just so happens that the deterents of war are also the tools of war. Believe it or not, our military and weapons do much more to protect us than playing patty cake with our enemies will ever do.
January 1st, 2009 at 9:50 pm
There is nothing wrong with starting to think about things that done to bring more peace in the world….look at how these 9 suggestions get people’s back up…?! Jeez.
what is wrong, for instance, with the idea of militia working on civil projects? There’s a lot of sitting around doing nothing in peace time, I bet most would like to be busier. And it would make it a lot easier to transition from soldier to civilian if they had a more useful trade than say, driving a tank…
And requiring that defense contractors be required to also do peacetime projects…that’s not a new idea…just one that Dubya’s puppet masters told him not to do.
In fact, many of those ideas will be implemented. Bases ARE being closed monthly. Why do you think you need to be in Japan, for instance? What are you worried about? They got your jobs, you buy their cars…no problemo
Good grief.
January 1st, 2009 at 11:00 pm
They don’t sit around and do nothing. They train. National Guardsman have regualar jobs when they aren’t doing their monthly training.
What do you think they do? Drive a tank a few hours then sit around eating bon bons the rest of the time?
Our military has suffered enough cuts. We need to build our military not cut it. Otherwise we will be viewed as weaker than we already are by the likes of russia, china and iran. They will be salivating and that little conspiracy theory set forth by the russia guy about the u.s. falling apart would be more tantalizing to our enemies.
These are the crappiest ideas I have heard in a long time from someone who doesn’t have a clue about the mlitary and national defense.
He needs to go write another book. Or maybe get some new glasses, other than the rose colored ones he is obviously wearing.
January 1st, 2009 at 11:06 pm
“ERIC—If you just do #9, then all the others have to follow, except for #2 and #6. They would be impossible because of no funds for contracts or military personnel.”
Not true. You are assuming that the money collected and spent will be the same from year to year. Also that we would not maybe, I don’t know, GIVE BACK tax money that wasn’t spent. If we balanced our national budget to better reflect the desires of the people (more than 1% spent on education) and didn’t tax people for the money that used to go to military uses then it would work. 60% of our budget goes to guns and bombs but nowhere near 60% of our population benefits from war or arms sales.
“While creating and promoting peace is a great goal, it can’t be accomplished by taking away the deterents of war. It just so happens that the deterents of war are also the tools of war. Believe it or not, our military and weapons do much more to protect us than playing patty cake with our enemies will ever do.”
You are obviously not in favor of supporting peace (no offense I just call em like I see em) in this situation. You must remove the deterents of war to ever hope to live without war. Think simply about this. Will you buy a gun, perhaps two? Why not, or why so? Then why not own machine guns …
Self-defense is one thing. But an eye for an eye leaves the whole world blind. Violence in the Middle-east will never stop until people simply refuse to pick up weapons. Tools of war are made for monsters to use. Monsters have no place in good society. I am but a monster who has yet to bar his teeth. Just like eveyone else.
Basically we have two options. Non-violence or death. No gray-areas or wiggle-room.
January 2nd, 2009 at 12:52 am
“Our military has suffered enough cuts. We need to build our military not cut it. Otherwise we will be viewed as weaker than we already are by the likes of russia, china and iran. They will be salivating and that little conspiracy theory set forth by the russia guy about the u.s. falling apart would be more tantalizing to our enemies. These are the crappiest ideas I have heard in a long time from someone who doesn’t have a clue about the mlitary and national defense. Or maybe get some new glasses, other than the rose colored ones he is obviously wearing. Posted by bilssfulconservative”
What cuts exactly? Did I miss something? You mean Clinton don’t you … could you be anymore irrevelant to this conservation than bringing up Clinton?
We are viewed as ‘weak’ when we invade countries like Stallon’s Russia and lie about it to the world. Weakness if having no honor. What we have done under Bush has shown the world we have no honor and are weak in both character and ideal. Unlike Deepak I do know a lot about national security and military affairs and these are excellent ideas that align with the ideas of a man named Ron Paul to some respects. A man who carried a great deal of support in the Republican Primaries. New glasses are needed. Both they are the glasses worn 24/7 by most conservatives regarding their own country. We both feed and arm the world. ‘Here’s some food, and a gun. Have fun!’ Take off your red, white & blue shaded glasses and wake up. We can be patroits and anti-government agendas in the same breath. In fact it is more American to tell your govt to stick it than it is to bow down and accept the official story. Deepak is only saying what Jesus would say if he were still alive.
January 2nd, 2009 at 1:07 am
ERICG—I found on defenselink.mil (http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=48860) that the total requested defense budget was $3.1 trillion. I don’t know the exact amount that was passed, but I feel confident it was pretty close to this number.
Then I found at kff.org (http://www.kff.org/medicare/upload/7750.pdf) a break down of President Bush’s planned FY2009 budget as a whole. This pdf has a pie chart on it.
Defense is ONLY 20% of the total budget. Social Security alone is 22%. Medicare another 14% and Medicaid another 7%. That is 43% of the budget to social programs, not including things like food stamps, unemployment or education. Also not including President-Elect Obama’s desire for the government to provide Health Care for all, or the bailouts, etc.
So, if Dr. Chopra’s plan were followed, particularly #9, there would $0 money for DoD and DHS because the total cost to fund social services is greater than what is spent on defense.
At 1% spent on education, we still outspend most other countries, and yet we usually rate somewhere about 12-15 in the world in terms of the quality of education our kids get. Throwing more money at another inefficient and useless government program will not help.
You wrote “You are obviously not in favor of supporting peace (no offense I just call em like I see em) in this situation. You must remove the deterents of war to ever hope to live without war. Think simply about this. Will you buy a gun, perhaps two? Why not, or why so? Then why not own machine guns …”
First, you might need to get your eyesight checked. Removing the deterents to war will only help promote peace if EVERYONE removes them. Iran won’t stop trying to develop a nuclear weapon now, do think they will suddenly stop if we stop our defense spending? Would Iran stop if Israel stopped its defense spending and development? Remember, one of Iran’s national goals is to completely wipe out Israel. Will Hugo Chavez stop? How about China? Or Russia?
As for the gun question, if need be, I would get a machine gun. Just look at Arizona. David Spade donated $100K of his own to help better arm the police because the CRIMINALS, who aren’t supposed to own weapons in the first place, have better and stronger weapons than the police. Within our own borders, we can’t keep people intent on destruction and crime from owning weapons, who we will ever get other nations to stop?
What is really needed to create peace is a change of heart and mind. But, until Palestinians and Arabs decide that the US and Israel have a right exist, and until the various tribes of Africa decide that the other tribes of Africa have the right to exist, peace won’t occur.
Weapons aren’t the cause of war, merely the tools. It is the heart and mindset of people that cause war.
And, I agree with you that we can be anti-government agendas and patriots at the same time.
January 2nd, 2009 at 8:15 am
These are the most frightening, idiotic idea I have ever heard. They seem so unbelievably ludicrous as to defy comment, but people had better comment just in case Deepak finds one person to listen to his insane recomendations. What planet does he live on?
Why is it that someone who writes touchy-feely psuedo-intellectual books fancies himself intellectually or politically qualified to tell us to disarm and make ourselves vulnerable to any crackpot nation or leaders that come along, including China and Russia, and the entire Muslim-terrorist world.
Fortunately, rational, thinking Americans can figure out that the barbarians are always at the gates, and that the fall of the United States will mean the collapse of civilization.
God help us all if anyone listens to these ideas.
January 2nd, 2009 at 12:37 pm
People like Deepak Chopra just show how truly clueless and radical the far left is in its thinking. If he thinks all can be solved by talk then maybe Deepak Chopra needs to visit Gaza and see if he can talk to Hamas and have them stop bombing Israel so they are not in the position where they need to defend themselves.
January 2nd, 2009 at 12:42 pm
Posted by Rise’
January 1st, 2009 at 5:11 pm
I guess he figures if there’s a discussion going on to decide the fate of the world, he’s invited.
Posted by Rise’
January 1st, 2009 at 5:11 pm
You sure could have fooled me.
Sincerely,
Mark
January 2nd, 2009 at 1:19 pm
Deepak needs to stay in whatever third world dirt farm he comes from and keep to himself.
January 2nd, 2009 at 1:31 pm
Joe,
That’s what they said about ALL of our ancestors when they came here.
But he originally comes from the world’s LARGEST democracy.
January 2nd, 2009 at 1:37 pm
Old,
don’t tell me you actually buy into what he is suggesting?
January 2nd, 2009 at 4:06 pm
T Mason:
The point that Old Lefty was making and that I was making is that you don’t have to be a U.S. citizen to be part of this discussion. It is most certainly a global issue.
January 2nd, 2009 at 4:16 pm
I just asked, please don’t tell me you buy into what he is suggesting.
January 2nd, 2009 at 4:19 pm
speaking of the economy. I am surprised that alan hasn’t posted anything about the 33 million dollar golf course/resort the UAW owns but hasn’t been paying all the taxes on.
How many jobs would that finance if they sold it?
pretty crappy that a group asking for the american taxapayer to bail them out has something that nice. Where is the outrage? It really ticks me off.
January 2nd, 2009 at 4:22 pm
I’m outraged on that one, too.
Mark
January 2nd, 2009 at 4:28 pm
Mark,
The national security of the United States of America is not a global issue – peace is a global issue, not the ability for us to defend ourselves.
If the purpose of our military might is for the sake of expansionism then I would tend to agree with you but this guy is talking about immasculating our defenses and I don’t think anyone who is not a U.S. Citizen has the right to suggest that we castrate ourselves.
You may think I don’t want peace but you are way off base. I have shed more tears today watching the developments in Gaza than you can imagine.
Rise’
January 2nd, 2009 at 7:18 pm
Rise’:
With all due respect, don’t you think the escalation of nuclear proliferation should be a concern to anyone that inhabits earth?
Mark
January 2nd, 2009 at 7:31 pm
Mark,
Nuclear proliferation, yes. But this gentleman’s suggestions went way beyond nuclear proliferation. I think any weaponry that can destroy the earth should be eliminated. The problem is that when the “good guys” disarm, then power is left in the hands of the global thugs. I wish there was complete power in diplomacy and humanitarian efforts but I suppose I have adopted my husband’s motto… Trust no one. I don’t trust anyone’s word on anything anymore… on the right or on the left.
Rise’
January 2nd, 2009 at 8:58 pm
Rise’:
We could argue the whole “trust no one” paranoia thing, but I thought your point when you posted:
implied that since Chopra’s citizenship status disqualified his opinion. If not, why did you bring it into the conversation?
Mark
January 2nd, 2009 at 9:11 pm
EricG
You have bought into another Bush lie.
that pie chart is distorted beyond belief….it doesn’t include interest on years’ past military spending (80%) of the borrowed cash, as well it has included Social Security as spending…it’s in trust.
In fact military spending under W and his ridiculous war is MUCH higher than that ‘pie chart’ indicates.
nice try bud…
:-)
I am so glad the GOP was defeated by a majority of Americans, it almost makes me wish there was a god so I could thank her…
January 2nd, 2009 at 9:12 pm
Mark,
You didn’t misunderstand at all. The point I was trying to make was that I agree with you when it comes to nuclear proliferation or ANY weapon with such a magnitude of destruction (biological, chemical, etc.) But Chopra’s suggestions are far more reaching than that – to the point of immasculating us militarily – and for that I don’t think a non-US citizen has a voice.
In my additional babbling… I was just trying to say that I wish we could do as Chopra suggests and only use diplomacy and humanitarian efforts as opposed to military muscle – but I don’t trust the rest of the world to “not bite the hand that feeds them”.
Maybe I’m just depressed and need to get the heck off the news sites and go watch my Dr. Quinn DVD’s!
Take care,
Rise’
January 2nd, 2009 at 9:26 pm
BADMRFROSTY—Actually, I was the one who posted the link to the pie chart. I was replying to Eric G.
Anyway, if Social Security is in a trust, then how does it keep getting raided, to the point of it not being sustainable any longer? The government owes Trillions back to Social Security, which is not included either.
And since you brought up interest…what about the interest owed on the Social Security “trust” funds that have been used for other things?
You have a valid point about the war. I believe most of that spending has been outside of the regular budget process.
Still, if funds from DoD and DHS are to be used to fully fund all the social programs that Democrats seem to want, there would not be any funds left for DoD or DHS.
January 2nd, 2009 at 9:34 pm
Hang in there, Rise’.
This blog is all about debating the solutions to the world’s problems. There’s a lot of wonderful things to be optimistic about… it’s just not the purpose of this site to pump sunshine!
You sound like a nice person.
Mark
January 2nd, 2009 at 9:38 pm
TRA.
Fair enough.
But I’m not sure I think Obama is lying when he says it can be done.
After all greater minds than mine have been on the cusp of national US health insurance since FDR.
In fact it almost introduced under LBJ in the ’60’s and it was (southern) Democrats that helped defeat it. They were afraid of hospital racial integration, and losing their seats – that just breaks my heart to read about…but it was the reality of the day.
But it’s NOT a partisan issue. Did you know that R Milhouse Nixon tried desperately for national health care? He did! He was a good guy that got caught up in the Republican machine, and now you’d think he the devil himself to hear it!
Hilary Clinton almost achieved it as well.
But the plan that Obama’s people have been working on for years can fly, it really can. It’s not ’socialist medicine’, ot gov’t run health care or any of these other Hannity-esque falsehoods. It’s just insurance for all, no big deal.
He says it can be done. He says that most folks will keep the coverage they have. He says that insurance companies will not be able to use genetic screening etc to throw you under the bus.
And he says it will be largely paid for by the savings from having ALL americans insured!
Maybe he’s full of sh8t…you can throw him out at the next election, yippee kayaa…if he can’t pull it off…
But you all have a chance to get behind something that has been wanted by both parties for years, and is wanted by a huge majority of Americans.
People like O’Reilly and his ilk…they HAVE their health care, they always will. they are afraid of losing the Bush tax cuts. The same cuts that haven’t done diddly for America.
I just cannot understand the vitriolic opposition, especially by compassionate ‘christians’ (!?) to trying to take care of the least among us…
I blame the right-wing media, like Faux News and its ilk, I really do…
:-(
January 2nd, 2009 at 9:54 pm
There is no possible way with the deficit the way it is to provide healthcare to every american. Ther is no way.
I am sure obama would include both legal and illegal persons, since many illegals are already a great burden on our healthcare system.
January 2nd, 2009 at 10:00 pm
let there be no mistake about it the peace loving people and the so called war mongers do not want war with any one, but in a world such as this with people like Chavez and the pres of Iran and the North Korean leader Kim Jong we can not afford this sort of thing, to disarm would be to lose our country in a few short years or even months , it is a nice thing to think we can all get along but human nature precludes those thoughts. Sadly if we we do not keep our guard up we will be hit in the nose and it will be broken and we will not survive because we will have no defense , to suggest we disarm to such an extent is to have a death wish . Can we have some intelligence here? for a change .
January 3rd, 2009 at 8:27 am
One of the greatest ‘burdens’ (if you want to call helping people a burden) on your so-called health care ’system’ (It’s really an industry, noy a ’system’)
…is uninsured people that don’t ever see a doctor, ever get checked out, never catch cancers early etc etc…and then they end up in the Emergency Dept.s…the most expensive and inneffecient route to go.
When everyone has insurance under the Democrats (Finally…members of BOTH parties have been trying for 50 years!) these costs will go way down…
Look, it’s coming whether Bilss O’Reilly wants it or not….you can always vote for Sarah Palin in 2012 and set your country back to Victorian times if you want…
January 3rd, 2009 at 1:25 pm