[2064] in peace2
Re: Department of Peace, Homeland Security Name Alternative
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Mark Lupisella)
Tue Nov 19 02:32:02 2002
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Date: Tue, 19 Nov 2002 02:25:34 -0500
To: Aimee L Smith <alsmith@MIT.EDU>, peace-announce@MIT.EDU
From: Mark Lupisella <mark.lupisella@gsfc.nasa.gov>
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Hi all. Just wanted to clarify that as per the below email, CNN
asked viewers to respond with alternative names to Homeland Security
since close to 80% thought it was not a good name. I found this
striking and thought it had to be signalling something. Anyway, I'm
working with a congressman (Dennis Kucinich D-OH) who has proposed a
bill calling for the establishment of a Department of Peace (40+
co-sponsors), so I'm suggesting we write CNN with this as an
alternative name - after all, the pursuit of peace is the pursuit of
security. this could get aired if lots of folks suggest it and the
bill could get good visibility. This is the kind of thing we need to
counter balance all the war talk.
You may want to take a second to read the rest below.
Thanks for any interest.
Mark
At 12:21 AM -0500 11/19/02, Aimee L Smith wrote:
>A friend of my family sent this along. If you are
>particularly interested in working on this, please let me know
>or contact Mark directly. In short, there is a letter
>writing campaign to cnn to suggest "Dept of Peace" and a
>much needed campaign to get an international treaty against
>the militarization of space.
>
>hope = resistance,
>
>Aimee
>
>
>Date: Mon, 18 Nov 2002 23:42:00 -0500
>To: alsmith@MIT.EDU
>From: Mark Lupisella <mark.lupisella@gsfc.nasa.gov>
>Subject: Department of Peace, Homeland Security Name Alternative
>
>
>Hi Aimee. left a phone message about this. Not sure about your
>email, so trying this one. Trying to connect to various networks on
>this, so if you or other you know might be interested, send around,
>or some version you're comfortable with. An email to CNN suggesting
>this alternative name and noting the Kucinich bill may get it aired
>and get visibility on the bill. I assume you're connected to a broad
>network of folks that might be interested in helping out on this.
>
>Also want to talk to you about the Space Preservation Treaty which is
>an effort to ban all space-based weapons - submitted to Canadian
>Foriegn Minister and Prime Minister for a treaty conference as they
>did with Landmines. It's a stretch, but folks I'm working with are
>pretty well connected and making progress and a letter writing
>campaign from Americans to the Canadian Prime and Foreign Minister
>will make a difference. They're saying they need to know there's
>some support in the US. Kucinich has also introduced a companion
>bill to this treaty and will be pushing the treaty conference idea in
>Canada when he goes there soon to talk to a large group - sponsored
>by previous Defense Minister of Canada and others.
>
>www.horizonsproject.org and www.peaceinspace.com (for the institute
>that's been working closely with Kucinich and many others -
>especially in Canada - on the treaty conference idea.
>
>Talk soon.
>
>Mark
>
>
>
>This is the email I sent to CNN and other peace groups I've been
>working with. Send emails to cnn@cnn.com.
>
>
>Lou Dobbs invited suggestions from viewers for Homeland Security
>Dep't name alternatives since there was a survey saying something
>like 80% think it's not a good name. I found that striking.
>
>Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) has proposed a bill with 40+ co-sponsors for a
>Department of Peace. That's an alternative many would like to see.
>"Homeland Peace" could be the dominant theme of such a department
>while still acknowledging the broader global web of causality that
>contributes to global and homeland security since the two are
>obviously related. This bill deserves media attention regardless,
>given the dominating war talk and tenuous geopolitical climate we
>find ourselves in.
>
>Another alternative is the Department of Defense. "Homeland
>security" is literally their job, and I'm concerned that this hasn't
>been raised more publicly. The National Security Advisor's Office
>and related offices are also supposed to satisfy a broader
>coordinating and synthesizing function. This was touched on early
>on, but quickly dropped as a public criticism. DoD, the NSA office
>and related Executive Branch Offices are perfectly capable of more
>broadly coordinating as needed. That's what they're supposed to do.
>DoD is the most powerful, most well funded Gov't organization by an
>order of magnitude. For there to be such a hard push for a new large
>expensive Gov't agency raises the suspicion that certain political
>factions do not want to reflect on the failings of the DoD and the
>Exec Branch and want instead to further leverage this highly
>emotionally charged attack to expand military related spending and
>the military industrial complex in general.
>
>Perhaps a Department of Peace could do a better job.
>
>The U.S. spends roughly 5 times as much as any other single nation
>spends on defense, or over 1/3 rd of total global military
>expenditures.
>
>The U.S. spends over 50 times as much money on the military as all
>its potential "rogue" state enemies combined (Iran, Iraq, Libya,
>Syria, North Korea, and Cuba).
>
>The U.S. spends roughly twice what all its NATO allies spend on defense.
>
>Perhaps a Department of Peace could do a better job.
>
>
>
>
>Email address: Mark.Lupisella@gsfc.nasa.gov
>
>Business phone: 301-286-2918
>Business fax: 301-286-2325
>
>Business address: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
> Code 584
> Greenbelt Rd.
> Greenbelt, MD 20771
Email address: Mark.Lupisella@gsfc.nasa.gov
Business phone: 301-286-2918
Business fax: 301-286-2325
Business address: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
Code 584
Greenbelt Rd.
Greenbelt, MD 20771
