Mr. Obama, with his background in community organizing and advocacy, surely knows the benefits of conversion to a single-payer program. Apparently, dedication to the health insurance industry -- a major contributor to Democrats -- takes precedent in the Obama agenda.
(5) End the occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan.
"The staggering expense of the Iraq and Afghanistan invasions and occupations haven't only cost American, Iraqi, and Afghan lives. It also ate up trillions of dollars away that could have been spent on human and environmental needs. If we call home our troops right now, we can divert the money needed for military occupations to Green public works and other programs to jumpstart the economy -- a new peace dividend," said Starlene Rankin, co-chair of the Lavender Green Caucus.
The Green Party opposed both wars from the beginning and has criticized Mr. Obama's plans for delayed and partial troop withdrawal from Iraq and for sending more troops to Afghanistan.
(6) End the war on drugs, which wastes billions annually, hasn't curbed drug use, and ruins lives by incarcerating nonviolent offenders (mostly young, African American, Latino, and poor white) at further government expense.
"The war on drugs is America's longest and costliest war. With Afghanistan providing the world's biggest poppy crop, it's one of the main reasons the US is fighting a war there," said Cliff Thornton, co-chair of the Green Party and co-founder of Efficacy, Inc. (http://www.efficacy-online.org), which promotes major reforms in drug policy.
Harvard economist Jeffrey Miron has estimated that legalizing cannabis -- a drug far less harmful than alcohol -- would save federal, state, and local governments $44 billion a year in enforcement costs (http://www.prohibitioncosts.org/mironreport.html). Governments could collect another $33 billion in revenues by taxing cannabis as heavily as alcohol and tobacco.
(An earlier version of this column was published in the Brunswick, Maine, Times Record on December 13, 2008.)
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