Dud Hendrick and Michael Uhl, representing Maine Veterans for Peace, also went to lobby Congress members on March 2 and were similarly disheartened by what they heard. Michael reported in an email about their meeting with Maine's newly elected Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (liberal Democrat). "Congresswoman Pingree countered the argument [that the US could save $140 billion a year by closing our network of foreign military bases], however, suggesting that since foreign bases are subsidized substantially by ‘host’ governments, and, calculating the costs of dismantling and clean-up of these installations and repatriating personnel and equipment, etc., the savings in DOD expenditures would be negligible."
This was a very important trip for me as it gave leading anti-war activists from around the US an opportunity to begin developing a more clear picture of the Obama administration's direction on foreign policy. While some things are still murky (like what he will do about missile defense deployments in Poland and the Czech Republic) the broader picture of continued US militarism for control of diminishing natural resources appears to be coming into focus. The present expansion of US and NATO bases around the borders of Russia and continued US buildup around China are signs that the role of America under corporate globalization for the foreseeable future will remain "security export".
The Democrats in Congress are doing much at this time to deliver more social spending (butter) as we face economic decline. But at the same time it appears that the Democrats generally remain committed to also providing enormous funding for the military industrial complex. Despite much uncertainty these days there is one thing I am certain about - we as a nation can't afford guns and butter. We can't solve the problems of climate change, health care, education, job creation and infrastructure repair without making substantial cuts in military spending. Unless the American people resoundingly demand butter, and not guns, there will be little chance of us recovering from this economic collapse. The empire is killing us.
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