“If your only tool is a hammer, then every problem looks like a nail.”
This quote, attributed to Abraham H. Maslow, tells a lot about how the United States attacks its problems. Under President Trump, the solution to our real and imagined problems seems to be even more reliance on the “hammer” of military and militarized spending. Increasing bombs raining down on Yemen and Syria are recent examples.
According to current figures by the National Priorities Project, the U.S. will spend about 64 percent of its annual discretionary budget on militarization: military, incarceration, “building a wall,” immigration and law enforcement. To fund this, Trump proposes severe cuts to domestic programs including education, the environment, health care and housing. The U.S. military budget now is greater than the next seven countries combined: more than rivals like China and Russia, and more than allies like Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom, and France (source: www.nationalpriorities.org)
When is enough enough? Polling shows Americans of all political persuasions oppose increased military spending. War doesn’t bring peace, only death, destruction, resentment and more war. Wouldn’t it make sense to make strong investments in diplomacy, infrastructure, housing, education, jobs, health care, Social Security, Medicare, and the environment?
It’s past time we Americans add to our set of tools and rebalance our nation’s budget priorities, so that we can address the real needs of people. By making investments that pay off in peace and prosperity, we would truly “make America great again.”
Alice McCain Suquamish
