| | Asunto: | [interredes] Global Warming Effects - Some Possible Eco-tech Solutions - David Allen Stringer, (Peace) Dr Bowman's Vision + The Threat of "The Rapture"! | | Fecha: | Sabado, 21 de Abril, 2007 16:44:17 (-0500) | | Autor: | Ricardo Ocampo <ricardoredluz @.....com>
|
|
From: unialli@tiscali.co.uk
<unialli@tiscali.co.uk>
Date: 21-abr-2007 2:39
Subject: Re Global Warming
Effects - Some Possible Eco-tech Solutions - David Allen Stringer, (Peace) Dr
Bowman's Vision + The Threat of "The Rapture"!
To: Positive News <office@positivenews.org.uk>
See attached and forwarded
David Allen Stringer
Vision Quester News Agency & Universal
Alliance
--
CALENDARIO ESPIRITUAL 2007
Recursos RedLuz actualizados
www.mind-surf.net/redluzcalendario.htm
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Portal fisico y virtual a la:
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From: "Hank Stone"
To: "Hank"
Subject: [PEA
CE] Dr. Bowman's Vision
Date: Fri, 20 Apr 2007 09:13:31
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This is old. The
President Bush referred to is Bush 41. And we are =
sti
ll deeply mired in the misbehavior of Bush 43.
But take
a moment to refresh yourself in the thinking of Dr. Rober
t =
Bowman, who is not president, but who is wise and goo
d.
Hank Stone
----- Original Message -----=20
From: Bru
ce Eggum=20
A PEOPLE'S STATE OF THE UNION
January 1992
by Dr. Robert M. Bowman
I have been rather critical of
President Bush's State of the Union =
Address. It would t
herefore be fair for people to ask me if I thought I =
co
uld do any better. Maybe I can't. I certainly don't have
the time or =
resources he had to apply to the task. None
theless, that's not going to =
stop me from trying. Let m
e state at the start that I have no delusions =
of grande
ur. I am not a candidate for president or anything else.
I'm =
too outspoken to ever be elected to anything. If yo
u don't believe me, =
just read on. But there are things
which I sure wish some president, =
some day would say to
the American people -- but they probably won't. =
Howeve
r, in the off chance that these words give somebody an id
ea, I am =
sending copies of this to all the presidential
candidates of both major =
parties. [This long, written
version will be condensed for oral =
delivery.]
I now as
k you to suspend reality and pretend (just pretend, remem
ber) =
that I am speaking to you as President of the Unit
ed States and giving =
my State of the Union Address.
*
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
* * * * * * =
* * * * * * * * * *
Mister Speaker, Madam
President, Distinguished Members of the Congress, =
hono
red guests, and my fellow Americans: I have been your pre
sident for =
but a short time, and I still have much to l
earn. I hesitate to act in =
haste, and yet the times cry
out for change. We can never know for how =
long we are
privileged to play our role in life's drama, and this =
t
hought gives me a sense of urgency. I believe, for exampl
e, that John =
Kennedy had decided to end our involvement
in Vietnam, but was convinced =
to go slowly and methodi
cally. I am therefore not inclined to prudence, =
being c
ontent to let others supply that for me. Lord knows the p
onderous =
machinery of this government has a momentum of
staggering proportions. =
To change its direction is not
an easy task. Yet change, I believe, it =
must, and I wi
ll therefore speak plainly and with candor.
My talk toni
ght will have three main parts. In the first I will descr
ibe =
a changing world and what I believe should be our c
hanging role in it. =
In the second I will attempt to des
cribe the current state of our Union, =
its resources, an
d its challenges. In the third, I will describe my =
prop
osals for restoring, protecting, and enhancing those reso
urces in =
what I call a New Stewardship of the blessings
God has bestowed upon us.
OUR ROLE IN A CHANGING WORL
D
The Cold War is over. True, and good riddance! My pred
ecessor said that =
Communism was dead. That must come as
a surprise to the Chinese and =
Cubans, among others. Th
e Communist economic system is widely =
discredited, but
not dead. What died with the Cold War was a global =
cons
piracy to rule the world out of a totalitarian bureaucrac
y =
headquartered in Moscow.
Because that conspiracy die
d, everything else has changed. Countries =
like Cuba who
choose to be Communist can no longer be viewed as part o
f =
a global Soviet threat. When Cuba was providing our s
worn enemy, the =
USSR, with a naval base 90 miles off ou
r coast, our hostility toward =
them was understandable.
Now that their former patrons are our close =
friends the
Russians, Cuban Communism is no threat to anyone except
=
Cubans. Our relationship with them, as with any other n
ation, should be =
based on mutual interest and on an hon
est evaluation of their human =
rights record. The human
rights record of Cuba, according to Amnesty =
Internation
al and our own intelligence sources, is less than perfect
. =
Still, it is significantly better than that of China
(which is also =
Communist and to whom we have given Most
Favored Nation status), and =
much better than that of E
l Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Turkey, Saudi =
Arabia,
and Israel (to all of whom we give substantial military a
nd =
financial assistance). I therefore find it difficult
to justify =
continuation of an embargo which punishes t
he Cuban people and our own =
businesses far more than it
does Fidel Castro. I have therefore asked =
the Secretar
y of State, Mr. Jimmy Carter, to meet with representative
s =
of the Cuban government, with an eye toward normaliza
tion of relations. =
I fully expect these discussions to
bear fruit and to result in a =
resumption of full diplom
atic relations and an end to the embargo.
I have dealt a
t some length with Cuba, not because it is the most =
imp
ortant foreign policy issue facing us, but because it typ
ifies the =
kind of reevaluation we must, and will, condu
ct across the board in =
light of the changing world in w
hich we now live. During the Cold War, =
most of the worl
d fell into either our camp or their camp. Any nation =
w
hich befriended the Soviet Union, no matter how civilized
(like =
Hungary, for example), was automatically our ene
my. And any dictator =
which declared himself to be anti-
Communist, no matter how reprehensible
(like Somosa, Mar
cos, Duvalier, the Shah of Iran, etc.), was =
automatical
ly our friend and a candidate for military aid. Even when
a =
Communist government was freely and democratically e
lected by the people =
of Chile, the United States cast t
hem into the enemy camp. Allende was =
demonized, undermi
ned, and ultimately overthrown by the CIA.
But the Sovie
t Union no longer exists. All these artificial pro and co
n =
relationships based on Cold War divisions are now mea
ningless. Since =
there is no longer a global Soviet thre
at, we no longer need to demonize =
nations just because
their economies are more socialized than ours. And =
we n
o longer need to coddle, finance, and arm right wing tinh
orn =
dictators around the world.
Pending a case-by-case
review by the state department, I am ordering an =
immed
iate suspension of weapons transfers and military assista
nce =
disguised as foreign aid. In no case will such assi
stance be reinstated =
to help a government fight its own
people.
Yes, the Cold War is over. My predecessor said
we won it. That's not =
really true. We just didn't lose
as badly as the Russians. Just as in a =
hot war, there r
eally wasn't a winner -- just losers and worse losers. =
The only winners were the Japanese and Germans, because w
e wouldn't let =
them play the game.
What did we lose? W
e lost the ten trillion dollars spent on the military =
s
ince World War II. We lost over a hundred thousand young
men and women =
who gave their lives in Korea and Vietnam
. We lost our invincibility, =
failing in war for the fir
st time in Vietnam. And we lost our innocence.
In World
War I and World War II, America fought on the side of rig
ht and =
democracy and freedom and justice. We fought to
end all wars and to =
secure the peace. We were the good
guys. GI Joe was beloved around the =
world. Even in Kore
a, we seemed to be fighting alongside the other good =
gu
ys of the world against an evil aggressor.
But then came
Vietnam. Gradually, it dawned on those of us fighting th
e =
war that we were fighting the people of the country w
e were supposed to =
be protecting. We were no longer the
good guys. We had lost our =
innocence as well as the wa
r.
In Lebanon, we lost again. Then came a string of vict
ories: Libya, =
Panama, and Iraq. We shook the loser imag
e we had inherited in Vietnam. =
But we failed to shake t
he image of the bully. It's time, once again, =
for Ameri
cans to be the "good guys." It's time for America to rega
in its =
lost innocence.
Those of us who risked our live
s in Vietnam, and those who gave their =
lives there, wer
e told that America's security, our freedom, and our =
ve
ry existence were at stake. Well, we lost the war, but Am
erica is =
still here. Obviously, that war had nothing wh
atsoever to do with the =
security of the United States o
f America. Neither did the war in Iraq. =
Neither did any
of the many times in this century that the Marines were
=
sent into Nicaragua or Honduras or some other banana re
public, to =
protect the financial interests of the Unite
d Fruit Company. Each time, =
the American people and sol
diers were told that American security was at =
stake. Ea
ch time, it was a lie. Well, no more. The time for lies i
s =
over.
There's no more Soviet Union to bully its neig
hbors. And it's time we =
quit playing bully as well. It'
s time for an end to gunboat diplomacy. =
It's time for a
n end to American youth being used as cannon fodder for =
power politics. It's time for an end to our idealistic s
ervicemen and =
women being used as hired killers for cor
porate America and its overseas =
interests. It's time to
end the lying. It's time for the truth. And here =
it is
.
If America is attacked, I will call upon the brave you
ng men and women =
in our Armed Forces to repel the invad
ers, whoever they are. If the =
world faces another Hitle
r, I will ask our forces to help by fighting =
under the
Command of the Military Committee of the United Nations t
o =
uphold international law and the UN Charter. But this
I pledge: Never =
again, as long as I am Commander-in-Ch
ief, will American forces be used =
in violation of inter
national law and common morality, merely because =
we're
strong enough to get away with it.
The end of the Cold W
ar has revived the United Nations as an effective =
instr
ument for peace. All throughout the Cold War, US-Soviet =
belligerence had rendered the UN ineffective. Every aggr
essor was a =
client of one side or the other and could c
ount on them to veto any =
Security Council action agains
t them. The Cold War made the world safe =
for petty aggr
essors. But, as Saddam Hussein found out, things have =
c
hanged.
Now (before another conflict arises which threat
ens the unanimity of the =
Security Council), now is the
time to reform the United Nations. We must =
ensure that
the world community of nations is never again held hostag
e =
to a veto, by us or anyone else. My predecessor, in v
iolation of the =
law, refused to appoint members to the
US Commission for Improving the =
United Nations, thus pr
eventing progress from being made. It's time the =
Commis
sion got on with its work. I have therefore appointed Wal
ter =
Hoffman, Sam Levering, Charles Percy, Cyrus Vance,
Lester Brown, John =
Anderson, and Patricia Mische to the
Commission. They will have the full =
cooperation of the
State Department and our Ambassador to the United =
Nati
ons, Ramsey Clark.
Just before the end of World War II,
the United Nations was created. =
What high hopes we all
had for it. Unfortunately, the superpower rivalry =
preve
nted the highest of those hopes from being realized. But
in its 47 =
years, it has nonetheless contributed mightil
y to the citizens of this =
earth. Its many working agenc
ies go about curing disease, preventing =
famine, allocat
ing global resources, controlling international aviation,
=
post, and electronic transmissions, and just doing goo
d.
Now, in this post-Cold War world, the UN can at last
tackle the bigger =
problems and satisfy those higher hop
es. Now it can take on these four =
major challenges: int
ernational security and disarmament, international =
law
and justice, global environmental protection, and develop
ment in the =
Third World. In each of these challenges, t
he United States has an =
important role to play.
A stre
ngthened, effective United Nations will eventually make i
t =
unnecessary for individual nations to support large s
tanding armies for =
their own protection. The long-stand
ing goal of general and complete =
disarmament can once m
ore be pursued, and the elimination of nuclear =
weapons
contemplated. But these things cannot happen until new =
structures have been implemented which prevent any nation
or small group =
of nations from controlling UN peacekee
ping forces. Only when these new =
structures for peace h
ave been put in place, tested, and proven =
trustworthy c
an disarmament at last become a reality. We will proceed
=
with caution and care, for we must not and will not jeo
pardize the =
security of our country. But proceed we mus
t, and proceed we will.
It's also time to make internati
onal law effective and enforceable by =
giving the Intern
ational Court of Justice jurisdiction over individuals =
as well as governments and by withdrawing reservations wh
ereby =
individual nations may choose whether or not to a
bide by the Court's =
decisions. If law is to be effectiv
e, it must apply to the strong as =
well as the weak, the
rich as well as the poor. The worst offenders in =
the p
ast have been the United States and the Soviet Union. Whe
n the =
World Court condemned our mining of Nicaragua's h
arbors, we undermined =
their authority by denying their
jurisdiction and ignoring their =
decisions. This must no
t happen again.
I ask that Congress pass legislation acc
epting, without reservation, the =
jurisdiction of the In
ternational Court of Justice. President Yeltsin =
has ple
dged similar action. I am also announcing another reversa
l of =
previous policy. The United States now supports th
e establishment of an =
international criminal court.
Gl
obal environmental protection is a challenge which can no
longer be =
ignored. No nation is an island unto itself.
Fallout from Chernobyl =
contaminated most of Northern E
urope. Industrial pollution from Poland =
poisons lakes i
n the Ukraine; that from the United States causes acid =
rain in Canada. Greenhouse gases from the burning of Amaz
on rainforests =
and from auto exhausts threaten to cause
rising seas, inundating =
Bangladesh, the Netherlands, F
lorida, New York, and most of the coastal =
cities of the
world. We all share the same seas and the same ocean of
=
air. No Great Wall of China, no Spanish Armada, no Star
Wars system can =
keep out pollution. The impending envi
ronmental collapse is a global =
problem. It can only be
solved on a global basis.
This June, we are participatin
g in the United Nations Conference on =
Environment and D
evelopment (UNCED). This Earth Summit will be one of =
th
e most important events of the decade. Our delegates have
my pledge of =
full support. We in the United States pro
duce about 40% of the world's =
greenhouse gases and are
a major source of the problem. Without our full =
coopera
tion, efforts to prevent catastrophe are doomed to failur
e. But =
we will cooperate. It will mean some changes in
how we get our energy =
and how we power our automobiles,
but those changes are overdue anyway. =
I'll describe th
em more in the sections on domestic policy.
I have also
asked our delegation to drop their objection to the UNCED
=
Conference discussing the environmental effects of mil
itary activity. =
What happened in the Persian Gulf must
never happen again.
The UNCED Conference will also discu
ss development. For years, Mikhail =
Gorbachev talked abo
ut ending the arms race and using part of the money =
to
help people in the developing world. Now that the arms ra
ce is over, =
both his country and ours are so impoverish
ed from the Cold War that we =
must concentrate on the pr
oblems of our own people. Nevertheless, it is =
in our in
terest to turn poor nations into trading partners and poo
r =
people into customers. And it is right that we alloca
te a portion of the =
peace dividend to alleviating suffe
ring in those parts of the world =
where help is needed m
ost. Every three seconds, somewhere in the world, =
a chi
ld dies, needlessly, of starvation. Yet, we produce enoug
h grain so =
that every person on earth could have two lo
aves of bread a day, far =
more than is needed. They say
it's a matter of distribution. Well, let =
me tell you th
is: Back in the Cold War, we developed the capability to
=
deliver a nuclear weapon to any window in the Kremlin.
And they say we =
can't get a loaf of bread to where it's
needed? Well, there are a lot of =
American soldiers wit
hout enemies out there, and a lot of empty =
transports.
I'm asking the Secretary of Defense, General David Jones,
=
and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, General Colin Po
well, to come up =
with a plan for feeding the children o
f the world. I'm not sure how much =
we can accomplish, b
ut don't sell our troops short. They've accomplished =
mi
racles before. And this time, they'll be the good guys on
ce again. =
This, too, is part of our changing role in a
changing world.
The Defense Budget & the Peace Dividen
d:
This brings me to a subject which is part foreign pol
icy and part =
domestic policy: The Defense Budget, the P
eace Dividend, and the future =
of the US Armed Forces.
Secretary Jones, General Powell, and I have defined four
missions for =
our armed forces: (1) deterring anyone fro
m attacking the United States =
with weapons of mass dest
ruction, (2) defending our shores and borders =
from fore
ign invasion, (3) assisting the UN Military Committee in
=
defeating aggression, maintaining freedom of the seas a
nd airlanes, and =
performing peacekeeping functions, and
(4) engaging in humanitarian and =
relief efforts at hom
e or abroad.
We have determined that, for the foreseeabl
e future, these four missions =
can be accomplished with
about a third of our current forces and for =
about a fou
rth of the cost. This will, after a few years of transiti
on, =
result in a peace dividend of over $200 Billion per
year, about twenty =
times that proposed by my predecess
or. Now we can't get all that the =
first year or so, bec
ause to try to do so would result in massive =
unemployme
nt. Instead, we're determined to do it in such a way that
no =
one becomes jobless because peace has broken out.
This is my number one domestic priority -- the transition
from a wartime =
economy to a peacetime economy without
a single person joining the ranks =
of the jobless. Here'
s how we propose to do it.
First, I'm asking Congress to
approve a new and expanded GI Bill, so =
that the young
men and women leaving military service can get a college
=
education. This does two things: (1) it spreads their r
eturn to the work =
force over a period of years, instead
of dumping them into it all at =
once, and (2) it gives
them the opportunity to prepare for the new jobs =
of the
90s. Even today, in the midst of recession, there are ma
ny =
thousands of jobs available, but they require specia
lized skills the =
unemployed lack. The new GI Bill will
enable returning soldiers to =
acquire those skills and s
uccessfully compete in the job market.
Second, we're goi
ng to offer career military personnel an opportunity to =
transfer to other federal agencies without losing their
rank, their pay =
grade, their benefits, or their retirem
ent. In the past, senior military =
officers have success
fully gone back and forth between the military, =
NASA, a
nd the Department of Energy. There's no reason this canno
t apply =
to all ranks and all parts of government. The l
eadership and management =
skills learned in the military
can be applied in the Department of =
Commerce or Agricu
lture or Transportation. In addition, those who are =
off
ered jobs in the private sector can take early retirement
at a =
reduced pension. In a similar way, career civil s
ervice employees will =
be given the opportunity to trans
fer within the government or to leave =
early for the pri
vate sector. They will not be dumped on the street.
Most
of the peace dividend will come from lower operations an
d =
maintenance costs and from the cancellation of weapon
s programs. In =
addition to those terminated by my prede
cessor, we intend to cancel the =
"Brilliant Pebbles" spa
ce weapon portion of SDI and return the remainder =
to la
boratory research, a savings of about four billion the fi
rst year. =
We will cancel the DDG-51 cruiser, the F/A-18
Hornet fighter, Milstar, =
ATF (F-22) fighter, F-16C/D F
alcon, and about 30 other programs, for an =
annual savin
gs of 40 Billion dollars.
Now before anybody in the aero
space industry starts jumping out the =
window, just sit
down and hear me out. When my predecessor cancelled the =
B-2 and Seawolf programs, it sent shockwaves through the
defense =
industry, and resulted in an immediate jump in
unemployment. I don't =
intend for that to happen. We in
the federal government are responsible =
for the depende
nce of whole industries and, in some cases, entire =
comm
unities on the defense budget, and we have a responsibili
ty to the =
people involved. I have told the management o
f each of the major =
contractors involved that other con
tracts, for civilian systems, will be =
coming. During th
e transition, we will pay them to retrain their work =
fo
rce, provided there are no layoffs. One more time: we don
't want =
anybody becoming jobless because peace has brok
en out. If we can pay =
farmers not to grow crops, we can
pay engineers and machinists not to =
build weapons.
In
addition, we are at long last responding to public opini
on all around =
the world, and living up to our obligatio
ns under existing treaties by =
announcing an immediate a
nd permanent halt to all nuclear testing. =
Russia and th
e other Commonwealth Republics have already joined with u
s =
by making their moratorium permanent. We call upon Th
e United Kingdom, =
France, China, and all other nuclear
states to join in this historic =
moment, the end of the
nuclear age.
The Department of Energy, which has been sp
ending 80% of its budget on =
nuclear weapons, will now h
ave only two jobs: (1) clean up the =
radioactive and tox
ic mess created by half a century of weapons =
production
, so that at least a portion of the land involved can be
=
returned to productive use, and (2) what their name imp
lies: energy. =
Their primary mission will be to develop
clean, renewable, safe, =
non-polluting sources of energy
for this country and to improve energy =
efficiency. Und
er the guidance of the new Secretary of Energy, Amory =
L
ovins, I'm sure this can be accomplished.
RESOURCES AND
CHALLENGES
With all of our problems, we are still the r
ichest nation on earth. In =
measuring our riches, we can
divide our blessings into five categories: =
natural res
ources, material resources, financial resources, human =
resources, and spiritual resources. Let's start by taking
stock of these =
resources and looking at the challenges
threatening them.
Natural Resources:
We in America are
blessed with a beautiful, varied, and bounteous land. =
It lies mostly within the temperate zone and stretches fr
om sea to =
shining sea, with our most recent states exte
nding well into the Arctic =
and halfway to Asia. The lan
d is fertile, productive, and rich in =
minerals. much of
it is covered with forests and woodlands teeming with =
wildlife. An abundant supply of lakes, rivers, and aquife
rs provide =
water to a quarter of a billion thirsty peop
le. Our coastlines have some =
of the world's best ports
and harbors. We are rich, indeed, in natural =
resources.
Unfortunately, these natural resources are endangered b
y the same =
environmental hazards threatening the rest o
f the planet, particularly =
the greenhouse effect and gl
obal warming. We also have some homegrown =
threats. Amon
g them are the dumping of toxic chemicals from industry =
into our air, land, and water; intense concentrations of
toxic smog from =
automobile exhausts; and the loss of v
irgin rainforest to logging.
If we are to remain a rich
nation, we must find a way to preserve our =
natural reso
urces.
Material Resources:
We are rich in material reso
urces. We have modern cities designed for =
the automotiv
e age. We have the world's first and most extensive =
int
erstate highway system. We have a network of railroads re
aching into =
all parts of the country. We have dams, fac
tories, theme parks, Levis, =
television sets, and more c
ars per capita than any other nation. We are =
rich, inde
ed, in material resources.
Unfortunately, these resource
s are threatened by obsolescence and decay. =
Our cities
weren't built to last for hundreds of years, like those i
n =
Europe. Neither was anything else, it seems. The Amer
ican way was to =
build it fast and cheap, and throw it a
way when it wears out. Built-in =
obsolescence meant prof
it. It kept people buying new cars every two =
years -- a
t least until the Volkswagen showed up.
But then came th
e Cold War, and we spent that ten trillion dollars on =
t
he arms race, instead of on other things. You know what t
hat ten =
trillion dollars would buy? Every car, every pi
ece of clothing, every =
work of art, every piece of jewe
lry, every house, every factory, every =
dam, every machi
ne tool, every hospital, every schoolbook, every piece =
of furniture, ... everything in the country except the la
nd. That means =
that on the average, all of our material
resources are one generation =
older than they should be
. Things that should have been replaced, =
weren't. Our c
ities, water supplies, sewers, bridges, and roads are =
d
ecaying. Our factories and machine tools are obsolete. Ou
r schools and =
hospitals are antiquated and in disrepair
.
If we are to remain a rich nation, we must find a way
to renew our =
material resources.
Financial Resources:
In purely monetary terms, we in the United States, until
about 1980, =
were clearly the richest nation on earth.
Our standard of living was the =
highest in the world. Ou
r workers were the highest-paid in the world. We =
were t
he world's largest creditor nation. Everybody owed us mon
ey. Our =
corporations owned huge pieces of other countri
es. Our tourists traveled =
the world, buying up bargains
wherever they went.
Then came Reaganomics. During one p
residency, we went from the world's =
biggest creditor to
the world's biggest debtor. The deficits run up by =
Rea
gan were double the total of all the deficits run up by a
ll our =
presidents from Washington to Carter.
To financ
e these deficits, our government borrowed from overseas a
nd =
sold off pieces of America to foreigners. The Japane
se now own =
Rockefeller Center, Pebble Beach, Columbia P
ictures, most of the banks =
in California, and much of H
awaii. When George Bush went to Japan in =
January, the p
ublic envisioned him scolding them for the trade =
imbala
nce. He actually spent most of the time pleading with the
m to =
continue buying our bonds to finance our continuin
g deficit. If they =
quit buying, the US government would
go broke. The only leverage we have =
on them is that if
they bankrupted us, all the bonds they hold now would =
be worthless.
We are in the same position with respect t
o Japan as Israel is with =
respect to us.
At the same t
ime as this was happening, our government was busting =
P
ATCO, the Air Traffic Controllers' union, and was helping
corporations =
bust other unions. We no longer have the
best-paid workers in the world. =
We're about tenth. (But
we still have the best-paid corporate executives =
in th
e world. They're paid ten times what their counterparts i
n Japan =
are paid.) In this generation, the standard of
living in America has =
gone down for the first time in m
emory (except for CEOs).
We still are a productive natio
n. But if we want to remain a rich =
nation, we must get
our financial house in order and distribute our =
wealth
more equitably.
Human Resources:
Our greatest source of
riches has always been our people. Americans have =
been
the best educated, hardest working, most creative, most
innovative, =
most productive people in the world. That's
what made us number one.
Unfortunately, even these prec
ious human resources of ours are =
endangered. They are t
hreatened by dying cities, terrible schools, =
unaffordab
le health care, and joblessness. They are threatened by d
rugs, =
drug-related crime, and desperation. The life exp
ectancy of an American =
male born in Harlem is less than
that of a boy born in Bangladesh!
If we want to remain
a rich nation, we must protect, care for, nurture, =
and
develop our human resources.
Spiritual Resources:
Ame
rica, at least in this century, has been a land of happy,
fun-loving =
people, quietly religious and generous of s
pirit. Courage, compassion, =
virtue, loyalty, patience,
and optimism have exemplified the American =
character. Y
ou can see it in the illustrations of Norman Rockwell. He
=
didn't create it out of nothing. It was there. He mere
ly captured it.
But then came Vietnam. It seemed to sap
the spirit from the nation. The =
dread trio of assassina
tions -- John, Martin, and Bobby -- drained it =
even mor
e. Joblessness, homelessness, and despair strain the spir
it of =
some. Hate, greed, fear, selfishness, and mean-sp
iritedness poison =
others.
In the wake of World War II,
when we showed magnanimity and generosity =
in victory,
we received God's blessing on our land. But when, as a =
nation, we became selfish, greedy, arrogant, and brutal,
things changed. =
Psalm 37 says, "Trust in the Lord and d
o good, that you may dwell in the =
land and have securit
y."
If we want to remain a rich nation, we must husband
our spiritual =
resources.
A NEW STEWARDSHIP
How then
are we to protect and nurture our resources? For one thin
g, we =
must put them in the right order. In Biblical lan
guage, "Seek ye first =
the kingdom of God and its righte
ousness, and all else will be added =
unto you." Or put a
nother way, "Cure the disease and the symptoms will =
tak
e care of themselves." Or yet again, "You'll never go wro
ng by doing =
right."
The proper order for these resourc
es is as follows: spiritual resources =
first, human reso
urces second, natural resources third, material =
resourc
es fourth, and financial resources last. The problem of t
he =
recent past is that they were put upside down.
Stew
ardship is also a Biblical concept. It means that nothing
you have =
is your own. Your spouse, your children, your
money, your time, your =
talents all were given into you
r care by God. Ultimately, they belong to =
God, not you,
and you will be held accountable for your stewardship of
=
them. There is a similar relationship between governme
nt and the people. =
Ultimately, nothing belongs to the g
overnment. It belongs to the people, =
and the government
will be held accountable for its stewardship of the =
na
tion's resources.
Stewardship of our Spiritual Resources
:
The first priority is easy. Doing evil destroys the sp
irit. Doing good =
nurtures it. Just do the right thing a
nd our spiritual resources will =
automatically be taken
care of. Sending our kids out to kill people so =
we can
use the oil under their sand is wrong. It will destroy th
e spirit =
of the nation. Sending them out to feed the ch
ildren of the world is =
good. It will build the nation's
spirit. So never mind what seems more =
financially lucr
ative. That's the bottom priority. Never mind what's =
po
litically expedient. That has no priority. Do what is rig
ht.
Stewardship of Our Human Resources:
This is governm
ent's biggest, most expensive task. Through the private =
sector when possible, directly when necessary, the gover
nment must =
provide for the health, education, and well-
being of its citizens. This =
does not mean welfare. (Peo
ple's spiritual needs are at least as =
important as thei
r material needs, and welfare is destructive of the =
spi
rit.) It does mean acknowledging certain things as fundam
ental =
rights. Among these are health care, an education
, and a job at a living =
wage. And the three are related
.
For too long, we have incentivized unemployment by how
we handle health =
and education. We have burdened emplo
yers with the cost of health care, =
making it more expen
sive to hire workers. It has also resulted in 35 =
millio
n unemployed, self-employed, and part-time workers and th
eir =
families without any health coverage at all. We mus
t completely sever =
the connection between employment an
d health care, by establishing a =
comprehensive national
health system and recognizing basic health care =
as a r
ight. This will simultaneously improve both health care a
nd =
employment. Free, universal maternity and well-baby
care will help =
improve our abysmal infant mortality rat
e and will reduce the need for =
long-term intensive care
of premature and sickly infants. Some people =
call this
socialized medicine. I call it an investment in our huma
n =
resources. It is stewardship.
We have also burdened
employers with the cost of education by forcing =
cities
to support schools with property taxes. This has forced e
mployers =
into the suburbs and left only the unemployed
in the cities. This raises =
welfare and other urban cost
s, further increasing property tax rates and =
forcing st
ill more employers out of the cities in a fatal spiral. T
he =
solution to this problem is simple. Essential servic
es must be provided =
through taxes which are not affecte
d by artificial boundaries. Our =
people and our business
es should be taxed at the same rate whether they =
are lo
cated in a city, a suburb, on a farm, or in the middle of
a =
desert. And they should be taxed only on their incom
e. (Property taxes =
are confiscatory. They tax something
you paid for with money which was =
already taxed once w
hen you earned it. And they too often force people =
on f
ixed incomes out of their homes.) Local school boards oug
ht to run =
schools; but they shouldn't have to raise the
money for them. That =
should be the job of the IRS. A g
ood, high quality education must be =
recognized as a rig
ht, not just for the affluent in the suburbs, but for =
a
ll the people. That is not socialism. It is an investment
in our human =
resources. It is stewardship.
Quality ed
ucation requires quality teachers and small classes. We n
eed =
more and better teachers. To get them, we must give
teachers the respect =
their importance to society deser
ves, and we must pay them accordingly. =
I am earmarking
30% of the Peace Dividend to augment teacher salaries. =
In a few years, this will enable us to double their pay.
No matter how schools are financed, however, and no matt
er how =
generously they are financed, good education dep
ends on good students =
from good, stable families. In th
is the conservatives are absolutely =
right. Broken schoo
ls are caused by broken kids; broken kids are caused =
by
broken families; and broken families are caused by welfa
re. For too =
long, we have had a system where the only w
ay a father without a job =
could support his family was
by abandoning them so they could qualify =
for welfare. S
uch a system destroys not only families, but the human =
spirit as well. We must turn the incentives around. We mu
st give fathers =
jobs. There's nothing wrong with replac
ing welfare with workfare, as =
long as we recognize that
for some, their "job" ought to be staying home =
taking
care of the kids. Maybe we ought to actively give prefere
nce for =
the better jobs to those supporting families. S
ome will say this is a =
form of discrimination. I say it
is investing in our human resources. It =
is stewardship
.
Ideally, the government would have to directly provide
few jobs. Its =
main function would be in creating a cli
mate in which private sector =
jobs were readily availabl
e. This does not, however, mean cutting =
capital gains t
axes. But it could mean eliminating payroll taxes. =
Payr
oll taxes penalize businesses for hiring and reward them
for firing. =
That's backwards. If anything, we should be
giving business tax credits =
for hiring more people. Th
at would leave fewer jobs to be provided by =
the governm
ent. However it's done, we must recognize a steady job at
a =
living wage as a right. Some will call that socialis
m. I call it =
investing in our human resources. I call i
t stewardship.
The next question to be asked is, "If gov
ernment must provide jobs, =
either directly or through g
overnment contracts to the private sector, =
what kind of
jobs do we provide, doing what?" The answer to that =
qu
estion is straightforward. We put them to work stewarding
our natural =
and material resources.
First, a word abo
ut what kind of jobs we don't give them. We don't give =
them nonproductive or meaningless jobs. This is not a Com
munist =
bureaucracy. People don't want to scrub sidewalk
s with toothbrushes. =
Neither do they want to build usel
ess MXs and B-2s, which amounts to the =
same thing. Peop
le want jobs that create real wealth in which they can =
share. Building an MX doesn't do that. You can't ride it
to work. You =
can't eat it for breakfast. You can't wear
it to a party. You can't even =
put it on your mantle an
d admire it. It does not contribute to our =
standard of
living. It does not create wealth. It does not enlarge th
e =
pie in which we all must share. All it does is transf
er money from the =
taxpayers to the fatcat CEOs of the w
eapons manufacturers. Not good =
enough!
Neither can we
all flip Big Macs for each other. The so-called "service
=
economy" is a fraud. Of course, we've always had nonpro
ductive segments =
of society, earning money but not prod
ucing anything. But we can't all =
be politicians, invest
ors, and lawyers. Somebody has to build something! =
That
's the kind of job people want. People want to build a be
tter, =
richer America for their children. They want to b
uild for the future. =
And that's the kind of jobs we're
going to give them. Fortunately, there =
are lots of such
jobs just waiting to be done. Here are just a few =
exam
ples:
Stewardship of our Natural Resources:
(1) We need
to build a new energy system for our country. Our depend
ence =
on fossil fuels is causing us to have to sell off
pieces of America to =
pay for foreign oil. It is causing
us to maintain huge military forces =
and a militaristic
foreign policy in order to guarantee access to oil =
tha
t doesn't belong to us. It is causing us to pollute our a
ir with =
toxic smog and kill our forests and lakes with
acid rain. And it is =
causing us to hasten global warmin
g and the inundation of coastal =
cities, including our o
wn. It is slow suicide. Nuclear is no better. We =
still
don't know how to get rid of the radioactive waste, much
of which =
will remain deadly for thousands of years.
We
know how to get energy from the sun, the wind, and the t
ides. We know =
how to use these renewable sources to pro
duce electricity and hydrogen =
from seawater. We know ho
w to use electricity and hydrogen to run cars, =
trucks,
tractors, combines, and boats. New non-polluting power pl
ants =
and distribution systems are needed. We know how t
o build them. In the =
past, our tax and regulatory polic
ies have prevented utilities from =
changing over. Not an
y more. I'm asking Congress to work with the =
Secretary
of Energy to develop new policies which will hasten the =
changeover from the energy of death (oil). Our workers h
ave the =
know-how. They have the skills. They don't want
a handout, and we're not =
going to give them one. We're
going to put them to work building a =
clean, green ener
gy future for America.
(2) We need to build a non-pollut
ing transportation system for our =
country. Using the re
newable energy I've already described, we need =
electric
cars and trucks, non-polluting mass transit in our citie
s, =
magnetically levitated (MagLev) trains, and automate
d intercity =
highways. In general, we know how to do it.
But it's going to take more =
than just bending tin and
laying concrete. It's going to take research =
and develo
pment ... and the scientists and engineers no longer need
ed =
for MXs and such. The workers in our defense plants
don't want a =
handout, and we're not going to give them
one. We're going to pay their =
employers to retrain them
, and then we're going to put them to work =
building a n
ew transportation system for America.
(3) We need to bui
ld a reinvigorated civilian space program for our =
count
ry. Why waste all our space scientists on "Star Wars" wea
pons and =
botched-up Space Stations full of macho symbol
ism but no usefulness. We =
need a Rescue Mission for Pla
net Earth, with satellites monitoring =
global change, tr
acking sources of air pollution, water pollution, acid =
rain, and deforestation. We need to better measure and un
derstand the =
hole in our ozone layer, the stability of
the Antarctic ice sheet, and =
the greenhouse effect. We
also need to continue exploring our neighbors =
in the So
lar System, perhaps finding the key that will enable us t
o =
escape their lifeless fate. The workers at NASA don't
want a handout, =
and we're not going to give them one.
We're going to put them to work =
building a new space pr
ogram for America and for the global environment =
we mus
t share with the rest of the world. This is not a Buck Ro
gers =
boondoggle. It's an investment in our most preciou
s and irreplaceable =
natural resources. This is stewards
hp.
(4) We need to build new green versions of old indus
tries. For too long, =
we have raped the land, clearcut o
ur forests, and polluted our waters to =
line the pockets
of tycoons. For too long the taxpayers have had to pay =
to clean up the messes made by chemical companies and ot
her industries. =
In a true free-market capitalist societ
y, they wouldn't get such =
subsidies. They would have to
either pay for their own cleanup or learn =
to do things
differently in the first place. This might mean hiring =
people to figure it out for them and build them new, saf
e, non-polluting =
plants. Good! There are millions of Am
ericans ready, willing, and able. =
They don't want a han
dout, and we're not going to give them one. But we =
are
going to quit subsidizing the polluters and rapers of the
land, so =
they will have to put our people to work buil
ding new, clean, =
non-polluting industries for America.
These are just a few examples of jobs that need doing if
we are to be =
stewards of our natural resources. Even m
ore jobs are available =
rebuilding our nation's long-neg
lected material resources.
Stewardship of our Material R
esources:
We need to build a new infrastructure for our
country. Our roads, =
bridges, water supplies, and sewer
systems are decaying. Schools, =
hospitals, and libraries
are in need of renovation. These are all public =
facili
ties; only government can pay to get them fixed. Local go
vernments =
don't have the money and can't raise it. If t
hey try, people and =
corporations just move away, leavin
g them worse off than they were =
before. Only the federa
l government can do it, and we should, and we =
will. Man
y millions of able-bodied Americans are frustrated and id
le. =
Millions more are underemployed. They don't want a
handout, and we're =
not going to give them one. We're go
ing to put them to work rebuilding =
America.
For years,
the working people of America were told that the people
in =
the peace movement were their enemy, because they wa
nted to eliminate =
their jobs. They were told that the e
nvironmentalists were their enemy, =
because they wanted
to do away with their jobs. They were told that the =
peo
ple in the civil rights movement were their enemy, becaus
e they =
wanted to take their jobs away and give them to
someone else. None of =
these things were true. The polit
ics of division are over. All of us =
want the same thing
, to be good stewards of the riches God has bestowed =
up
on us, to live in peace with our neighbors, and to feel g
ood about =
ourselves, knowing that we are doing good wor
k and creating real wealth =
and a better life for oursel
ves, our families, and our fellow Americans.
Stewardship
of our Financial Resources:
Finally, I must say a few w
ords about financial resources. During the =
Reagan- Bush
era, federal income tax rates were slashed, particularly
=
the rates for those with the highest incomes. But beca
use of cuts in =
federal domestic spending, state and loc
al spending was forced to fill =
the gap. So state and lo
cal taxes went up. The end result of all this =
was that
the total tax burden on the rich decreased dramatically,
while =
that on the poor and middle class went up, even a
s their income went =
down.
I have called for this patch
work of overlapping federal, state, and =
local taxes to
be completely eliminated and replaced with a single =
pro
gressive federal income tax. Much of the receipts will be
returned to =
the states and localities for local needs
such as education. I have =
asked leaders of Congress to
meet with members of my staff and with =
interested gover
nors and mayors from around the country. They will =
deve
lop the details. The important thing to remember is that
financial =
resources exist to serve people, not the othe
r way around.
IN CONCLUSION
Tonight, I divided my talk
into three sections. In the first, I =
described our chan
ging role in a changing world. If we are to be a great =
nation, we must first be a good nation. We will abide by
international =
law and support a strong, effective Unite
d Nations. This time we can and =
must abolish war as an
instrument of national policy. I also announced =
weapons
cuts, an end to nuclear testing, an end to our isolation
from =
Cuba, an end to military aid to dictators, and a
peace dividend to be =
achieved without creating joblessn
ess.
In the second section, I described the resources th
at we, the richest =
nation on earth, have been blessed w
ith, and outlined the threats to =
those resources.
In t
he third section, I prioritized our spiritual, human, nat
ural, =
material, and financial resources, in that order;
and I described a New =
Stewardship in which the governm
ent accepts responsibility for =
protecting and nurturing
these precious resources. In practical terms, =
this mea
ns always putting what's right ahead of what's expedient;
=
recognizing that basic health care, a good education,
and a steady job =
at a living wage are rights belonging
to all Americans; and putting =
people to work on renewab
le energy, non-polluting vehicles, clean =
industry, and
our infrastructure. Our objective is a nation at peace =
with the world, with itself, and with God. And that means
NO jobless, NO =
homeless, and NO American without healt
h care, adequate food, and as =
much education as they ca
n absorb.
I'm pledged never to lie to you, so I'm not go
ing to tell you all this =
will be easy. But with your he
lp and your prayers, we can succeed. God =
has blessed Am
erica. Now we must do our part. Thank you, and goodnight.
--------------
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This is o
ld. The President Bush =
referred to=20
is Bush 41.
And we are still deeply mired in the misbehav
ior =
of Bush=20
43.
But take a moment to refresh yourself =
in the=20
t
hinking of Dr. Robert Bowman, who is not president, but w
ho is wise and =
good.
Hank Stone
----- Original Message -----=20
A PEOPLE'S =
STATE OF=20
THE UNION
January 1992
by Dr. Robert M. Bowman
I have been ra
ther critical of President Bush's State of the Union =
Ad
dress.=20
It would therefore be fair for people to ask me
if I thought I could do =
any=20
better. Maybe I can't.
I certainly don't have the time or resources he =
had to=
20
apply to the task. Nonetheless, that's not going to st
op me from trying. =
Let me=20
state at the start that I
have no delusions of grandeur. I am not a =
candidate=20
for president or anything else. I'm too outspoken to ever
be elected to=20
anything. If you don't believe me, just
read on. But there are things =
which I=20
sure wish som
e president, some day would say to the American people --
=
but they=20
probably won't. However, in the off chance
that these words give =
somebody an=20
idea, I am sendin
g copies of this to all the presidential candidates of =
both=20
major parties. [This long, written version will b
e condensed for oral=20
delivery.]
I now ask you t
o suspend reality and pretend (just pretend, remember) =
that I=20
am speaking to you as President of the United S
tates and giving my State =
of the=20
Union Address.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
* * * * * * * * =
* * * *=20
* * * * * * *
Mister
Speaker, Madam President, Distinguished Members of the =
Congress,=20
honored guests, and my fellow Americans: I h
ave been your president for =
but a=20
short time, and I
still have much to learn. I hesitate to act in haste, =
a
nd yet=20
the times cry out for change. We can never know
for how long we are =
privileged=20
to play our role in
life's drama, and this thought gives me a sense of =
urge
ncy.=20
I believe, for example, that John Kennedy had dec
ided to end our =
involvement in=20
Vietnam, but was conv
inced to go slowly and methodically. I am therefore =
not
=20
inclined to prudence, being content to let others sup
ply that for me. =
Lord knows=20
the ponderous machinery
of this government has a momentum of staggering=20
propor
tions. To change its direction is not an easy task. Yet c
hange, I =
believe,=20
it must, and I will therefore spea
k plainly and with candor.
My talk tonight will ha
ve three main parts. In the first I will =
describe a=20
changing world and what I believe should be our changing
role in it. In =
the=20
second I will attempt to describe
the current state of our Union, its =
resources,=20
and
its challenges. In the third, I will describe my proposal
s for =
restoring,=20
protecting, and enhancing those res
ources in what I call a New =
Stewardship of=20
the bless
ings God has bestowed upon us.
OUR ROLE IN A CHANGING WORLD
The
Cold War is over. True, and good riddance! My predecessor
said =
that=20
Communism was dead. That must come as a s
urprise to the Chinese and =
Cubans,=20
among others. The
Communist economic system is widely discredited, but =
n
ot dead.=20
What died with the Cold War was a global cons
piracy to rule the world =
out of a=20
totalitarian burea
ucracy headquartered in Moscow.
Because that consp
iracy died, everything else has changed. Countries =
like
=20
Cuba who choose to be Communist can no longer be view
ed as part of a =
global=20
Soviet threat. When Cuba was
providing our sworn enemy, the USSR, with a =
naval=20
ba
se 90 miles off our coast, our hostility toward them was
=
understandable. Now=20
that their former patrons are ou
r close friends the Russians, Cuban =
Communism is=20
no
threat to anyone except Cubans. Our relationship with the
m, as with =
any other=20
nation, should be based on mutu
al interest and on an honest evaluation =
of their=20
hum
an rights record. The human rights record of Cuba, accord
ing to =
Amnesty=20
International and our own intelligenc
e sources, is less than perfect. =
Still, it=20
is signif
icantly better than that of China (which is also Communis
t and =
to whom=20
we have given Most Favored Nation stat
us), and much better than that of =
El=20
Salvador, Guate
mala, Honduras, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Israel (to all
=
of whom=20
we give substantial military and financial a
ssistance). I therefore find =
it=20
difficult to justify
continuation of an embargo which punishes the Cuban =
pe
ople=20
and our own businesses far more than it does Fide
l Castro. I have =
therefore=20
asked the Secretary of St
ate, Mr. Jimmy Carter, to meet with =
representatives of=
20
the Cuban government, with an eye toward normalization
of relations. I =
fully=20
expect these discussions to b
ear fruit and to result in a resumption of =
full=20
dipl
omatic relations and an end to the embargo.
I have
dealt at some length with Cuba, not because it is the mo
st =
important=20
foreign policy issue facing us, but bec
ause it typifies the kind of =
reevaluation=20
we must, a
nd will, conduct across the board in light of the changin
g =
world in=20
which we now live. During the Cold War, m
ost of the world fell into =
either our=20
camp or their
camp. Any nation which befriended the Soviet Union, no =
matter how=20
civilized (like Hungary, for example), was
automatically our enemy. And =
any=20
dictator which decl
ared himself to be anti-Communist, no matter how=20
repre
hensible
(like Somosa, Marcos, Duvalier, the Shah
of Iran, etc.), was =
automatically=20
our friend and a c
andidate for military aid. Even when a Communist =
govern
ment=20
was freely and democratically elected by the peop
le of Chile, the United =
States=20
cast them into the en
emy camp. Allende was demonized, undermined, and =
ultima
tely=20
overthrown by the CIA.
But the Soviet Unio
n no longer exists. All these artificial pro and =
con=20
relationships based on Cold War divisions are now meanin
gless. Since =
there is no=20
longer a global Soviet thre
at, we no longer need to demonize nations =
just=20
becau
se their economies are more socialized than ours. And we
no longer =
need to=20
coddle, finance, and arm right win
g tinhorn dictators around the =
world.
Pending a
case-by-case review by the state department, I am orderin
g =
an=20
immediate suspension of weapons transfers and m
ilitary assistance =
disguised as=20
foreign aid. In no c
ase will such assistance be reinstated to help a =
govern
ment=20
fight its own people.
Yes, the Cold War is
over. My predecessor said we won it. That's not =
really
=20
true. We just didn't lose as badly as the Russians. J
ust as in a hot =
war, there=20
really wasn't a winner --
just losers and worse losers. The only winners =
were=20
the Japanese and Germans, because we wouldn't let them p
lay the =
game.
What did we lose? We lost the ten
trillion dollars spent on the =
military=20
since World W
ar II. We lost over a hundred thousand young men and wome
n =
who gave=20
their lives in Korea and Vietnam. We lost
our invincibility, failing in =
war for=20
the first tim
e in Vietnam. And we lost our innocence.
In World
War I and World War II, America fought on the side of rig
ht =
and=20
democracy and freedom and justice. We fought
to end all wars and to =
secure the=20
peace. We were the
good guys. GI Joe was beloved around the world. Even =
i
n=20
Korea, we seemed to be fighting alongside the other
good guys of the =
world=20
against an evil aggressor.
But then came Vietnam. Gradually, it dawned on those
of us fighting =
the war=20
that we were fighting the pe
ople of the country we were supposed to be=20
protecting.
We were no longer the good guys. We had lost our innocen
ce =
as well=20
as the war.
In Lebanon, we lost ag
ain. Then came a string of victories: Libya, =
Panama,=20
and Iraq. We shook the loser image we had inherited in V
ietnam. But we =
failed to=20
shake the image of the bull
y. It's time, once again, for Americans to be =
the=20
"g
ood guys." It's time for America to regain its lost innoc
ence.
Those of us who risked our lives in Vietnam,
and those who gave their =
lives=20
there, were told tha
t America's security, our freedom, and our very =
existen
ce=20
were at stake. Well, we lost the war, but America i
s still here. =
Obviously, that=20
war had nothing whatso
ever to do with the security of the United States =
of=20
America. Neither did the war in Iraq. Neither did any of
the many times =
in this=20
century that the Marines wer
e sent into Nicaragua or Honduras or some =
other=20
bana
na republic, to protect the financial interests of the Un
ited Fruit =
Company.=20
Each time, the American people a
nd soldiers were told that American =
security was=20
at
stake. Each time, it was a lie. Well, no more. The time f
or lies is =
over.
There's no more Soviet Union to
bully its neighbors. And it's time we =
quit=20
playing
bully as well. It's time for an end to gunboat diplomacy.
It's =
time for=20
an end to American youth being used a
s cannon fodder for power politics. =
It's=20
time for an
end to our idealistic servicemen and women being used as
=
hired=20
killers for corporate America and its oversea
s interests. It's time to =
end the=20
lying. It's time f
or the truth. And here it is.
If America is attack
ed, I will call upon the brave young men and =
women in o
ur=20
Armed Forces to repel the invaders, whoever they ar
e. If the world faces =
another=20
Hitler, I will ask our
forces to help by fighting under the Command of =
the=20
Military Committee of the United Nations to uphold inter
national law and =
the UN=20
Charter. But this I pledge:
Never again, as long as I am =
Commander-in-Chief,=20
wil
l American forces be used in violation of international l
aw and =
common=20
morality, merely because we're strong
enough to get away with it.
The end of the Cold Wa
r has revived the United Nations as an =
effective=20
ins
trument for peace. All throughout the Cold War, US-Soviet
=
belligerence had=20
rendered the UN ineffective. Every
aggressor was a client of one side or =
the=20
other and
could count on them to veto any Security Council action
=
against them.=20
The Cold War made the world safe for p
etty aggressors. But, as Saddam =
Hussein=20
found out, t
hings have changed.
Now (before another conflict a
rises which threatens the unanimity of =
the=20
Security
Council), now is the time to reform the United Nations. W
e must =
ensure=20
that the world community of nations is
never again held hostage to a =
veto, by us=20
or anyone
else. My predecessor, in violation of the law, refused t
o =
appoint=20
members to the US Commission for Improving
the United Nations, thus =
preventing=20
progress from b
eing made. It's time the Commission got on with its work.
=
I have=20
therefore appointed Walter Hoffman, Sam Leve
ring, Charles Percy, Cyrus =
Vance,=20
Lester Brown, John
Anderson, and Patricia Mische to the Commission. They =
will=20
have the full cooperation of the State Department
and our Ambassador to =
the=20
United Nations, Ramsey Cl
ark.
Just before the end of World War II, the Unit
ed Nations was created. =
What=20
high hopes we all had f
or it. Unfortunately, the superpower rivalry =
prevented=
20
the highest of those hopes from being realized. But in
its 47 years, it =
has=20
nonetheless contributed mighti
ly to the citizens of this earth. Its many =
working=20
a
gencies go about curing disease, preventing famine, alloc
ating global=20
resources, controlling international avia
tion, post, and electronic=20
transmissions, and just doi
ng good.
Now, in this post-Cold War world, the UN
can at last tackle the =
bigger=20
problems and satisfy t
hose higher hopes. Now it can take on these four =
major=
20
challenges: international security and disarmament, in
ternational law =
and=20
justice, global environmental pr
otection, and development in the Third =
World. In=20
eac
h of these challenges, the United States has an important
role to =
play.
A strengthened, effective United
Nations will eventually make it =
unnecessary=20
for indi
vidual nations to support large standing armies for their
own=20
protection. The long-standing goal of general and
complete disarmament =
can once=20
more be pursued, and
the elimination of nuclear weapons contemplated. =
But th
ese=20
things cannot happen until new structures have bee
n implemented which =
prevent=20
any nation or small grou
p of nations from controlling UN peacekeeping =
forces.=2
0
Only when these new structures for peace have been put
in place, tested, =
and=20
proven trustworthy can disarma
ment at last become a reality. We will =
proceed=20
with
caution and care, for we must not and will not jeopardize
the =
security of=20
our country. But proceed we must, a
nd proceed we will.
It's also time to make interna
tional law effective and enforceable by =
giving=20
the I
nternational Court of Justice jurisdiction over individua
ls as well =
as=20
governments and by withdrawing reserva
tions whereby individual nations =
may=20
choose whether
or not to abide by the Court's decisions. If law is to be
=
effective, it must apply to the strong as well as the
weak, the rich as =
well as=20
the poor. The worst offen
ders in the past have been the United States =
and the=20
Soviet Union. When the World Court condemned our mining
of Nicaragua's =
harbors,=20
we undermined their authorit
y by denying their jurisdiction and ignoring =
their=20
d
ecisions. This must not happen again.
I ask that C
ongress pass legislation accepting, without reservation,
=
the=20
jurisdiction of the International Court of Justi
ce. President Yeltsin =
has=20
pledged similar action. I
am also announcing another reversal of =
previous=20
poli
cy. The United States now supports the establishment of a
n =
international=20
criminal court.
Global enviro
nmental protection is a challenge which can no longer be
=
ignored. No nation is an island unto itself. Fallout f
rom Chernobyl =
contaminated=20
most of Northern Europe.
Industrial pollution from Poland poisons lakes =
in the=2
0
Ukraine; that from the United States causes acid rain i
n Canada. =
Greenhouse=20
gases from the burning of Amazo
n rainforests and from auto exhausts =
threaten to=20
cau
se rising seas, inundating Bangladesh, the Netherlands, F
lorida, New =
York,=20
and most of the coastal cities of
the world. We all share the same seas =
and the=20
same o
cean of air. No Great Wall of China, no Spanish Armada, n
o Star =
Wars=20
system can keep out pollution. The impen
ding environmental collapse is a =
global=20
problem. It
can only be solved on a global basis.
This June, w
e are participating in the United Nations Conference on=2
0
Environment and Development (UNCED). This Earth Summit
will be one of =
the most=20
important events of the deca
de. Our delegates have my pledge of full =
support. We=20
in the United States produce about 40% of the world's gr
eenhouse gases =
and are a=20
major source of the problem
. Without our full cooperation, efforts to =
prevent=20
c
atastrophe are doomed to failure. But we will cooperate.
It will mean =
some=20
changes in how we get our energy a
nd how we power our automobiles, but =
those=20
changes a
re overdue anyway. I'll describe them more in the section
s on =
domestic=20
policy.
I have also asked our d
elegation to drop their objection to the UNCED =
Confere
nce discussing the environmental effects of military acti
vity. =
What=20
happened in the Persian Gulf must never h
appen again.
The UNCED Conference will also discus
s development. For years, =
Mikhail=20
Gorbachev talked a
bout ending the arms race and using part of the money =
t
o help=20
people in the developing world. Now that the ar
ms race is over, both his =
country=20
and ours are so im
poverished from the Cold War that we must concentrate =
o
n the=20
problems of our own people. Nevertheless, it is
in our interest to turn =
poor=20
nations into trading pa
rtners and poor people into customers. And it is =
right=
20
that we allocate a portion of the peace dividend to al
leviating =
suffering in=20
those parts of the world wher
e help is needed most. Every three seconds, =
somewhere
in the world, a child dies, needlessly, of starvation. Ye
t, we =
produce=20
enough grain so that every person on e
arth could have two loaves of =
bread a day,=20
far more
than is needed. They say it's a matter of distribution. W
ell, =
let me=20
tell you this: Back in the Cold War, we
developed the capability to =
deliver a=20
nuclear weapon
to any window in the Kremlin. And they say we can't get
a =
loaf of=20
bread to where it's needed? Well, there ar
e a lot of American soldiers =
without=20
enemies out the
re, and a lot of empty transports. I'm asking the =
Secre
tary of=20
Defense, General David Jones, and the Chairman
of the Joint Chiefs, =
General=20
Colin Powell, to come
up with a plan for feeding the children of the =
world. I
'm=20
not sure how much we can accomplish, but don't sell
our troops short. =
They've=20
accomplished miracles bef
ore. And this time, they'll be the good guys =
once=20
ag
ain. This, too, is part of our changing role in a changin
g world.
The Defen
se Budget & the Peace =
Dividend:
This bri
ngs me to a subject which is part foreign policy and part
=
domestic=20
policy: The Defense Budget, the Peace Divi
dend, and the future of the US =
Armed=20
Forces.
Secretary Jones, General Powell, and I have defined four
missions for =
our=20
armed forces: (1) deterring anyone
from attacking the United States with =
weapons=20
of mas
s destruction, (2) defending our shores and borders from
foreign =
invasion,=20
(3) assisting the UN Military Comm
ittee in defeating aggression, =
maintaining=20
freedom o
f the seas and airlanes, and performing peacekeeping func
tions, =
and (4)=20
engaging in humanitarian and relief e
fforts at home or abroad.
We have determined that,
for the foreseeable future, these four =
missions can=20
be accomplished with about a third of our current forces
and for about a =
fourth=20
of the cost. This will, afte
r a few years of transition, result in a =
peace=20
divid
end of over $200 Billion per year, about twenty times tha
t proposed =
by my=20
predecessor. Now we can't get all t
hat the first year or so, because to =
try to=20
do so wo
uld result in massive unemployment. Instead, we're determ
ined to =
do it=20
in such a way that no one becomes jobl
ess because peace has broken =
out.
This is my num
ber one domestic priority -- the transition from a =
wart
ime=20
economy to a peacetime economy without a single pe
rson joining the ranks =
of the=20
jobless. Here's how we
propose to do it.
First, I'm asking Congress to a
pprove a new and expanded GI Bill, so =
that the=20
young
men and women leaving military service can get a college
=
education. This=20
does two things: (1) it spreads the
ir return to the work force over a =
period of=20
years,
instead of dumping them into it all at once, and (2) it g
ives =
them the=20
opportunity to prepare for the new job
s of the 90s. Even today, in the =
midst of=20
recession,
there are many thousands of jobs available, but they req
uire=20
specialized skills the unemployed lack. The new G
I Bill will enable =
returning=20
soldiers to acquire tho
se skills and successfully compete in the job =
market.
Second, we're going to offer career military person
nel an opportunity =
to=20
transfer to other federal agen
cies without losing their rank, their pay =
grade,=20
the
ir benefits, or their retirement. In the past, senior mil
itary =
officers have=20
successfully gone back and forth
between the military, NASA, and the =
Department=20
of E
nergy. There's no reason this cannot apply to all ranks a
nd all =
parts of=20
government. The leadership and manag
ement skills learned in the military =
can be=20
applied
in the Department of Commerce or Agriculture or Transport
ation. =
In=20
addition, those who are offered jobs in th
e private sector can take =
early=20
retirement at a redu
ced pension. In a similar way, career civil service=20
em
ployees will be given the opportunity to transfer within
the =
government or to=20
leave early for the private sec
tor. They will not be dumped on the =
street.
Most
of the peace dividend will come from lower operations an
d =
maintenance=20
costs and from the cancellation of wea
pons programs. In addition to =
those=20
terminated by my
predecessor, we intend to cancel the "Brilliant =
Pebble
s" space=20
weapon portion of SDI and return the remainde
r to laboratory research, a =
savings=20
of about four bi
llion the first year. We will cancel the DDG-51 cruiser,
=
the=20
F/A-18 Hornet fighter, Milstar, ATF (F-22) fight
er, F-16C/D Falcon, and =
about 30=20
other programs, for
an annual savings of 40 Billion dollars.
Now befo
re anybody in the aerospace industry starts jumping out t
he =
window,=20
just sit down and hear me out. When my pr
edecessor cancelled the B-2 and =
Seawolf=20
programs, it
sent shockwaves through the defense industry, and result
ed =
in an=20
immediate jump in unemployment. I don't int
end for that to happen. We in =
the=20
federal government
are responsible for the dependence of whole =
industries
and,=20
in some cases, entire communities on the defense
budget, and we have a=20
responsibility to the people in
volved. I have told the management of =
each of the=20
ma
jor contractors involved that other contracts, for civili
an systems, =
will be=20
coming. During the transition, w
e will pay them to retrain their work =
force,=20
provide
d there are no layoffs. One more time: we don't want anyb
ody =
becoming=20
jobless because peace has broken out. I
f we can pay farmers not to grow =
crops,=20
we can pay e
ngineers and machinists not to build weapons.
In a
ddition, we are at long last responding to public opinion
all =
around the=20
world, and living up to our obligati
ons under existing treaties by =
announcing an=20
immedia
te and permanent halt to all nuclear testing. Russia and
the =
other=20
Commonwealth Republics have already joined
with us by making their =
moratorium=20
permanent. We ca
ll upon The United Kingdom, France, China, and all other
=
nuclear=20
states to join in this historic moment, the
end of the nuclear age.
The Department of Energy,
which has been spending 80% of its budget =
on=20
nuclear
weapons, will now have only two jobs: (1) clean up the =
radioactive and=20
toxic mess created by half a century
of weapons production, so that at =
least a=20
portion of
the land involved can be returned to productive use, and
(2) =
what=20
their name implies: energy. Their primary
mission will be to develop =
clean,=20
renewable, safe, n
on-polluting sources of energy for this country and to =
improve=20
energy efficiency. Under the guidance of the n
ew Secretary of Energy, =
Amory=20
Lovins, I'm sure this
can be accomplished.
RESOUR
CES AND CHALLENGES
With all of our
problems, we are still the richest nation on =
earth. In=
20
measuring our riches, we can divide our blessings into
five categories: =
natural=20
resources, material resour
ces, financial resources, human resources, and =
spiritu
al resources. Let's start by taking stock of these resour
ces and =
looking=20
at the challenges threatening them.<
/P>
Natural Resources:
We in America are blesse
d with a beautiful, varied, and bounteous =
land. It=20
l
ies mostly within the temperate zone and stretches from s
ea to shining =
sea,=20
with our most recent states exten
ding well into the Arctic and halfway =
to Asia.=20
The l
and is fertile, productive, and rich in minerals. much of
it is =
covered=20
with forests and woodlands teeming wi
th wildlife. An abundant supply of =
lakes,=20
rivers, an
d aquifers provide water to a quarter of a billion thirst
y =
people. Our=20
coastlines have some of the world's be
st ports and harbors. We are rich, =
indeed,=20
in natura
l resources.
Unfortunately, these natural resource
s are endangered by the same=20
environmental hazards thr
eatening the rest of the planet, particularly =
the=20
gr
eenhouse effect and global warming. We also have some hom
egrown =
threats. Among=20
them are the dumping of toxic
chemicals from industry into our air, =
land, and=20
wate
r; intense concentrations of toxic smog from automobile e
xhausts; =
and the=20
loss of virgin rainforest to loggin
g.
If we are to remain a rich nation, we must find
a way to preserve our =
natural=20
resources.
Mat
erial Resources:
We are rich in material resources
. We have modern cities designed for =
the=20
automotive
age. We have the world's first and most extensive interst
ate =
highway=20
system. We have a network of railroads r
eaching into all parts of the =
country.=20
We have dams,
factories, theme parks, Levis, television sets, and more
=
cars per=20
capita than any other nation. We are rich,
indeed, in material =
resources.
Unfortunately, t
hese resources are threatened by obsolescence and =
decay
. Our=20
cities weren't built to last for hundreds of yea
rs, like those in =
Europe.=20
Neither was anything else,
it seems. The American way was to build it =
fast and=20
cheap, and throw it away when it wears out. Built-in obs
olescence meant =
profit.=20
It kept people buying new ca
rs every two years -- at least until the =
Volkswagen=20
showed up.
But then came the Cold War, and we spen
t that ten trillion dollars on =
the=20
arms race, instea
d of on other things. You know what that ten trillion =
d
ollars=20
would buy? Every car, every piece of clothing,
every work of art, every =
piece of=20
jewelry, every hou
se, every factory, every dam, every machine tool, =
every
=20
hospital, every schoolbook, every piece of furniture,
... everything in =
the=20
country except the land. That
means that on the average, all of our =
material=20
reso
urces are one generation older than they should be. Thing
s that =
should have=20
been replaced, weren't. Our citie
s, water supplies, sewers, bridges, and =
roads=20
are de
caying. Our factories and machine tools are obsolete. Our
schools =
and=20
hospitals are antiquated and in disrepa
ir.
If we are to remain a rich nation, we must fin
d a way to renew our =
material=20
resources.
Fina
ncial Resources:
In purely monetary terms, we in t
he United States, until about 1980, =
were=20
clearly the
richest nation on earth. Our standard of living was the
=
highest in=20
the world. Our workers were the highest-p
aid in the world. We were the =
world's=20
largest credit
or nation. Everybody owed us money. Our corporations owne
d =
huge=20
pieces of other countries. Our tourists trave
led the world, buying up =
bargains=20
wherever they went
.
Then came Reaganomics. During one presidency, we
went from the =
world's=20
biggest creditor to the world
's biggest debtor. The deficits run up by =
Reagan=20
wer
e double the total of all the deficits run up by all our
presidents =
from=20
Washington to Carter.
To fina
nce these deficits, our government borrowed from overseas
and =
sold off=20
pieces of America to foreigners. The J
apanese now own Rockefeller =
Center, Pebble=20
Beach, Co
lumbia Pictures, most of the banks in California, and muc
h of =
Hawaii.=20
When George Bush went to Japan in Janua
ry, the public envisioned him =
scolding=20
them for the
trade imbalance. He actually spent most of the time =
ple
ading with=20
them to continue buying our bonds to financ
e our continuing deficit. If =
they=20
quit buying, the U
S government would go broke. The only leverage we have =
on them=20
is that if they bankrupted us, all the bonds t
hey hold now would be=20
worthless.
We are in the
same position with respect to Japan as Israel is with =
r
espect=20
to us.
At the same time as this was happ
ening, our government was busting =
PATCO, the=20
Air Tra
ffic Controllers' union, and was helping corporations bus
t other =
unions.=20
We no longer have the best-paid work
ers in the world. We're about tenth. =
(But we=20
still h
ave the best-paid corporate executives in the world. They
're paid =
ten=20
times what their counterparts in Japan
are paid.) In this generation, =
the=20
standard of livin
g in America has gone down for the first time in memory =
(except=20
for CEOs).
We still are a productive n
ation. But if we want to remain a rich =
nation, we=20
mu
st get our financial house in order and distribute our we
alth more=20
equitably.
Human Resources:
Ou
r greatest source of riches has always been our people. A
mericans =
have been=20
the best educated, hardest workin
g, most creative, most innovative, most =
productive peo
ple in the world. That's what made us number one.
Unfortunately, even these precious human resources of our
s are =
endangered.=20
They are threatened by dying citie
s, terrible schools, unaffordable =
health care,=20
and j
oblessness. They are threatened by drugs, drug-related cr
ime, and=20
desperation. The life expectancy of an Americ
an male born in Harlem is =
less than=20
that of a boy bo
rn in Bangladesh!
If we want to remain a rich nati
on, we must protect, care for, =
nurture, and=20
develop
our human resources.
Spiritual Resou
rces:
America, at least in this century, has been
a land of happy, =
fun-loving=20
people, quietly religiou
s and generous of spirit. Courage, compassion, =
virtue,=
20
loyalty, patience, and optimism have exemplified the A
merican character. =
You can=20
see it in the illustratio
ns of Norman Rockwell. He didn't create it out =
of=20
no
thing. It was there. He merely captured it.
But th
en came Vietnam. It seemed to sap the spirit from the nat
ion. =
The dread=20
trio of assassinations -- John, Marti
n, and Bobby -- drained it even =
more.=20
Joblessness, h
omelessness, and despair strain the spirit of some. Hate,
=
greed,=20
fear, selfishness, and mean-spiritedness poi
son others.
In the wake of World War II, when we s
howed magnanimity and =
generosity in=20
victory, we rece
ived God's blessing on our land. But when, as a nation, =
we=20
became selfish, greedy, arrogant, and brutal, thin
gs changed. Psalm 37 =
says,=20
"Trust in the Lord and do
good, that you may dwell in the land and have=20
securit
y."
If we want to remain a rich nation, we must hu
sband our spiritual=20
resources.
<
STRONG>A NEW STEWARDSHIP
How then a
re we to protect and nurture our resources? For one =
thi
ng, we=20
must put them in the right order. In Biblical l
anguage, "Seek ye first =
the=20
kingdom of God and its r
ighteousness, and all else will be added unto =
you." Or=
20
put another way, "Cure the disease and the symptoms wi
ll take care of=20
themselves." Or yet again, "You'll nev
er go wrong by doing right."
The proper order for
these resources is as follows: spiritual =
resources=20
f
irst, human resources second, natural resources third, ma
terial =
resources=20
fourth, and financial resources las
t. The problem of the recent past is =
that=20
they were
put upside down.
Stewardship is also a Biblical co
ncept. It means that nothing you =
have is=20
your own. Y
our spouse, your children, your money, your time, your =
talents all=20
were given into your care by God. Ultimate
ly, they belong to God, not =
you, and=20
you will be hel
d accountable for your stewardship of them. There is a =
similar=20
relationship between government and the people
. Ultimately, nothing =
belongs to=20
the government. It
belongs to the people, and the government will be =
held=
20
accountable for its stewardship of the nation's resour
ces.
Stewardship of our Spiritual Resources:
<
P>The first priority is easy. Doing evil destroys the spi
rit. Doing =
good=20
nurtures it. Just do the right thing
and our spiritual resources will=20
automatically be tak
en care of. Sending our kids out to kill people so =
we c
an=20
use the oil under their sand is wrong. It will dest
roy the spirit of the =
nation.=20
Sending them out to fe
ed the children of the world is good. It will =
build the
=20
nation's spirit. So never mind what seems more financ
ially lucrative. =
That's the=20
bottom priority. Never m
ind what's politically expedient. That has no =
priority.
=20
Do what is right.
Stewardship of Our Human Res
ources:
This is government's biggest, most expensi
ve task. Through the =
private sector=20
when possible, d
irectly when necessary, the government must provide for =
the=20
health, education, and well-being of its citizens
. This does not mean =
welfare.=20
(People's spiritual ne
eds are at least as important as their material =
needs,
and=20
welfare is destructive of the spirit.) It does mea
n acknowledging =
certain things=20
as fundamental rights
. Among these are health care, an education, and a =
job
at a=20
living wage. And the three are related.
Fo
r too long, we have incentivized unemployment by how we h
andle =
health and=20
education. We have burdened employe
rs with the cost of health care, =
making it=20
more expe
nsive to hire workers. It has also resulted in 35 million
=
unemployed,=20
self-employed, and part-time workers an
d their families without any =
health=20
coverage at all.
We must completely sever the connection between =
employ
ment and=20
health care, by establishing a comprehensive
national health system and=20
recognizing basic health ca
re as a right. This will simultaneously =
improve both=20
health care and employment. Free, universal maternity an
d well-baby care =
will=20
help improve our abysmal infan
t mortality rate and will reduce the need =
for=20
long-t
erm intensive care of premature and sickly infants. Some
people =
call this=20
socialized medicine. I call it an i
nvestment in our human resources. It =
is=20
stewardship.
We have also burdened employers with the cost of
education by forcing =
cities=20
to support schools with
property taxes. This has forced employers into =
the=20
s
uburbs and left only the unemployed in the cities. This r
aises welfare =
and=20
other urban costs, further increas
ing property tax rates and forcing =
still more=20
employ
ers out of the cities in a fatal spiral. The solution to
this =
problem is=20
simple. Essential services must be p
rovided through taxes which are not =
affected=20
by arti
ficial boundaries. Our people and our businesses should b
e taxed =
at the=20
same rate whether they are located in
a city, a suburb, on a farm, or in =
the=20
middle of a
desert. And they should be taxed only on their income. =
(Property=20
taxes are confiscatory. They tax something y
ou paid for with money which =
was=20
already taxed once
when you earned it. And they too often force people =
on
fixed=20
incomes out of their homes.) Local school boards
ought to run schools; =
but they=20
shouldn't have to ra
ise the money for them. That should be the job of =
the I
RS. A=20
good, high quality education must be recognized
as a right, not just for =
the=20
affluent in the suburbs
, but for all the people. That is not socialism. =
It is
an=20
investment in our human resources. It is stewardshi
p.
Quality education requires quality teachers and
small classes. We =
need more=20
and better teachers. To
get them, we must give teachers the respect =
their=20
i
mportance to society deserves, and we must pay them accor
dingly. I am=20
earmarking 30% of the Peace Dividend to a
ugment teacher salaries. In a =
few=20
years, this will e
nable us to double their pay.
No matter how school
s are financed, however, and no matter how =
generously=2
0
they are financed, good education depends on good stude
nts from good, =
stable=20
families. In this the conserva
tives are absolutely right. Broken schools =
are=20
cause
d by broken kids; broken kids are caused by broken famili
es; and =
broken=20
families are caused by welfare. For t
oo long, we have had a system where =
the=20
only way a f
ather without a job could support his family was by =
aba
ndoning them=20
so they could qualify for welfare. Such a
system destroys not only =
families, but=20
the human sp
irit as well. We must turn the incentives around. We must
=
give=20
fathers jobs. There's nothing wrong with repla
cing welfare with =
workfare, as=20
long as we recognize
that for some, their "job" ought to be staying home =
tak
ing=20
care of the kids. Maybe we ought to actively give
preference for the =
better jobs=20
to those supporting f
amilies. Some will say this is a form of =
discrimination
. I=20
say it is investing in our human resources. It is
stewardship.
Ideally, the government would have to
directly provide few jobs. Its =
main=20
function would
be in creating a climate in which private sector jobs =
w
ere=20
readily available. This does not, however, mean cu
tting capital gains =
taxes. But=20
it could mean elimina
ting payroll taxes. Payroll taxes penalize =
businesses f
or=20
hiring and reward them for firing. That's backwards
. If anything, we =
should be=20
giving business tax cred
its for hiring more people. That would leave =
fewer jobs
=20
to be provided by the government. However it's done,
we must recognize a =
steady=20
job at a living wage as a
right. Some will call that socialism. I call =
it=20
inv
esting in our human resources. I call it stewardship.
The next question to be asked is, "If government must
provide jobs, =
either=20
directly or through government
contracts to the private sector, what =
kind of=20
jobs
do we provide, doing what?" The answer to that question i
s =
straightforward.=20
We put them to work stewarding ou
r natural and material resources.
First, a word ab
out what kind of jobs we don't give them. We don't =
give
them=20
nonproductive or meaningless jobs. This is not a
Communist bureaucracy. =
People=20
don't want to scrub s
idewalks with toothbrushes. Neither do they want to =
bui
ld=20
useless MXs and B-2s, which amounts to the same thi
ng. People want jobs =
that=20
create real wealth in whic
h they can share. Building an MX doesn't do =
that. You=2
0
can't ride it to work. You can't eat it for breakfast.
You can't wear it =
to a=20
party. You can't even put it
on your mantle and admire it. It does not=20
contribute t
o our standard of living. It does not create wealth. It d
oes =
not=20
enlarge the pie in which we all must share.
All it does is transfer =
money from=20
the taxpayers to
the fatcat CEOs of the weapons manufacturers. Not good=20
enough!
Neither can we all flip Big Macs for each
other. The so-called =
"service=20
economy" is a fraud.
Of course, we've always had nonproductive segments =
of=2
0
society, earning money but not producing anything. But
we can't all be=20
politicians, investors, and lawyers. S
omebody has to build something! =
That's the=20
kind of j
ob people want. People want to build a better, richer Ame
rica =
for their=20
children. They want to build for the
future. And that's the kind of jobs =
we're=20
going to g
ive them. Fortunately, there are lots of such jobs just =
waiting to be=20
done. Here are just a few examples:
Stewardship of our Natural Resources:
(1) We n
eed to build a new energy system for our country. Our =
d
ependence on=20
fossil fuels is causing us to have to sel
l off pieces of America to pay =
for=20
foreign oil. It i
s causing us to maintain huge military forces and a=20
mi
litaristic foreign policy in order to guarantee access to
oil that =
doesn't=20
belong to us. It is causing us to
pollute our air with toxic smog and =
kill our=20
forests
and lakes with acid rain. And it is causing us to hasten
global =
warming=20
and the inundation of coastal cities
, including our own. It is slow =
suicide.=20
Nuclear is
no better. We still don't know how to get rid of the =
ra
dioactive=20
waste, much of which will remain deadly for
thousands of years.
We know how to get energy from
the sun, the wind, and the tides. We =
know how=20
to us
e these renewable sources to produce electricity and hydr
ogen from=20
seawater. We know how to use electricity and
hydrogen to run cars, =
trucks,=20
tractors, combines, a
nd boats. New non-polluting power plants and =
distributi
on=20
systems are needed. We know how to build them. In t
he past, our tax and=20
regulatory policies have prevente
d utilities from changing over. Not any =
more.=20
I'm as
king Congress to work with the Secretary of Energy to dev
elop new =
policies=20
which will hasten the changeover f
rom the energy of death (oil). Our =
workers=20
have the
know-how. They have the skills. They don't want a handout
, and =
we're=20
not going to give them one. We're going
to put them to work building a =
clean,=20
green energy f
uture for America.
(2) We need to build a non-poll
uting transportation system for our =
country.=20
Using t
he renewable energy I've already described, we need elect
ric cars =
and=20
trucks, non-polluting mass transit in o
ur cities, magnetically levitated =
(MagLev) trains, and
automated intercity highways. In general, we know =
how
to do=20
it. But it's going to take more than just bendin
g tin and laying =
concrete. It's=20
going to take resear
ch and development ... and the scientists and =
engineers
no=20
longer needed for MXs and such. The workers in our
defense plants don't =
want a=20
handout, and we're not
going to give them one. We're going to pay their=20
emplo
yers to retrain them, and then we're going to put them to
work =
building a=20
new transportation system for Ameri
ca.
(3) We need to build a reinvigorated civilian
space program for our =
country.=20
Why waste all our spa
ce scientists on "Star Wars" weapons and botched-up =
Spa
ce=20
Stations full of macho symbolism but no usefulness.
We need a Rescue =
Mission for=20
Planet Earth, with sat
ellites monitoring global change, tracking sources =
of a
ir=20
pollution, water pollution, acid rain, and deforest
ation. We need to =
better=20
measure and understand the
hole in our ozone layer, the stability of the =
Antarcti
c ice sheet, and the greenhouse effect. We also need to c
ontinue =
exploring our neighbors in the Solar System, p
erhaps finding the key =
that will=20
enable us to escape
their lifeless fate. The workers at NASA don't want =
a=
20
handout, and we're not going to give them one. We're g
oing to put them =
to work=20
building a new space progra
m for America and for the global environment =
we must=20
share with the rest of the world. This is not a Buck Rog
ers boondoggle. =
It's an=20
investment in our most preci
ous and irreplaceable natural resources. =
This is=20
ste
wardshp.
(4) We need to build new green versions o
f old industries. For too =
long, we=20
have raped the la
nd, clearcut our forests, and polluted our waters to =
li
ne the=20
pockets of tycoons. For too long the taxpayers
have had to pay to clean =
up the=20
messes made by chemi
cal companies and other industries. In a true =
free-mark
et=20
capitalist society, they wouldn't get such subsidie
s. They would have to =
either=20
pay for their own clean
up or learn to do things differently in the first =
place
.=20
This might mean hiring people to figure it out for t
hem and build them =
new,=20
safe, non-polluting plants.
Good! There are millions of Americans ready, =
willing,
and able. They don't want a handout, and we're not going
to =
give them=20
one. But we are going to quit subsidizi
ng the polluters and rapers of =
the land,=20
so they wil
l have to put our people to work building new, clean, =
n
on-polluting=20
industries for America.
These are
just a few examples of jobs that need doing if we are to
be =
stewards of our natural resources. Even more jobs a
re available =
rebuilding our=20
nation's long-neglected
material resources.
Stewardship of our Material Re
sources:
We need to build a new infrastructure for
our country. Our roads, =
bridges,=20
water supplies, an
d sewer systems are decaying. Schools, hospitals, and=20
libraries are in need of renovation. These are all public
facilities; =
only=20
government can pay to get them fix
ed. Local governments don't have the =
money and=20
can't
raise it. If they try, people and corporations just move
away, =
leaving=20
them worse off than they were before.
Only the federal government can do =
it, and=20
we shoul
d, and we will. Many millions of able-bodied Americans ar
e =
frustrated=20
and idle. Millions more are underemploy
ed. They don't want a handout, =
and we're=20
not going t
o give them one. We're going to put them to work rebuildi
ng=20
America.
For years, the working people of Am
erica were told that the people in =
the=20
peace movemen
t were their enemy, because they wanted to eliminate thei
r =
jobs.=20
They were told that the environmentalists we
re their enemy, because they =
wanted=20
to do away with
their jobs. They were told that the people in the civil =
rights=20
movement were their enemy, because they wanted
to take their jobs away =
and give=20
them to someone el
se. None of these things were true. The politics of =
div
ision=20
are over. All of us want the same thing, to be g
ood stewards of the =
riches God=20
has bestowed upon us,
to live in peace with our neighbors, and to feel =
good=
20
about ourselves, knowing that we are doing good work a
nd creating real =
wealth=20
and a better life for oursel
ves, our families, and our fellow =
Americans.
Ste
wardship of our Financial Resources:
Finally, I mu
st say a few words about financial resources. During the
=
Reagan-=20
Bush era, federal income tax rates were slas
hed, particularly the rates =
for=20
those with the highe
st incomes. But because of cuts in federal domestic=20
sp
ending, state and local spending was forced to fill the g
ap. So state =
and=20
local taxes went up. The end result
of all this was that the total tax =
burden on=20
the ri
ch decreased dramatically, while that on the poor and mid
dle class =
went=20
up, even as their income went down.
I have called for this patchwork of overlapping fed
eral, state, and =
local=20
taxes to be completely elimin
ated and replaced with a single progressive =
federal=20
income tax. Much of the receipts will be returned to the
states and =
localities=20
for local needs such as educat
ion. I have asked leaders of Congress to =
meet with=20
m
embers of my staff and with interested governors and mayo
rs from around =
the=20
country. They will develop the de
tails. The important thing to remember =
is that=20
finan
cial resources exist to serve people, not the other way a
round.
IN CONCLUSION
Tonight, I divided my talk into three sections.
In the first, I =
described our=20
changing role in a ch
anging world. If we are to be a great nation, we =
must f
irst=20
be a good nation. We will abide by international
law and support a =
strong,=20
effective United Nations.
This time we can and must abolish war as an =
instrument=
20
of national policy. I also announced weapons cuts, an
end to nuclear =
testing, an=20
end to our isolation from
Cuba, an end to military aid to dictators, and =
a peace
=20
dividend to be achieved without creating joblessness.
In the second section, I described the resources
that we, the richest =
nation=20
on earth, have been bles
sed with, and outlined the threats to those=20
resources.
In the third section, I prioritized our spiritual
, human, natural, =
material,=20
and financial resources,
in that order; and I described a New =
Stewardship in=20
which the government accepts responsibility for protecti
ng and nurturing =
these=20
precious resources. In practi
cal terms, this means always putting what's =
right=20
ah
ead of what's expedient; recognizing that basic health ca
re, a good =
education,=20
and a steady job at a living w
age are rights belonging to all Americans; =
and=20
putti
ng people to work on renewable energy, non-polluting vehi
cles, =
clean=20
industry, and our infrastructure. Our ob
jective is a nation at peace =
with the=20
world, with it
self, and with God. And that means NO jobless, NO =
homel
ess, and NO=20
American without health care, adequate foo
d, and as much education as =
they can=20
absorb.
I'm pledged never to lie to you, so I'm not going to tell
you all =
this will=20
be easy. But with your help and y
our prayers, we can succeed. God has =
blessed=20
America
. Now we must do our part. Thank you, and goodnight.
--------------
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