George Rebane

A modern Chinese naval squadron is now operating off the coast of Africa, the first such projection of power since the 1400s.  Stratfor reports that these ships also completed their first at-sea replenishment as they joined the international effort to suppress piracy off the coast of Somalia.  Along with Russia and India, China is spending its considerable resources in building up its military to accompany and protect its world worldwide reach for natural resources and trading partners.  To do otherwise would be sheer idiocy, and the Chinese are not idiots.

In this environment one of our country’s famous pop spiritual leaders has it all figured out as reported by the left-wing truthout.org.  Mr. Chopra has written an open letter to our president-elect outlining that our country follow nine steps to bring peace and prosperity to the world.

    1. Scale out arms dealing and make it illegal by the year 2020.
    2. Write into every defense contract a requirement for a peacetime project.
    3. Subsidize conversion of military companies to peaceful uses with tax incentives and direct funding.
    4. Convert military bases to housing for the poor.
    5. Phase out all foreign military bases.
    6. Require military personnel to devote part of their time to rebuilding infrastructure.
    7. Call a moratorium on future weapons technologies.
    8. Reduce armaments like destroyers and submarines that have no use against terrorism and were intended to defend against a superpower enemy that no longer exists.
    9. Fully fund social services and take the balance out of the defense and homeland security budgets.
    These are just the beginning. We don’t lack creativity in coping with change. Without a conversion of our present war economy to a peace economy, the high profits of the military-industrial complex ensures that it will never end.

In the large I’m not sure what all this letter demonstrates.  One can reasonably argue that perhaps meditation does not clarify the mind in all the claimed dimensions.  In any case we should renew our gratitude and respect for the Founders, and the role they foresaw for the church in the country’s governance.

[4jan09 update]  Good intentions are no insurance against a sophomoric understanding of what is going on in the world.  As wannabe and former world powers take a measure of the upcoming American leadership, they are all beginning to make their moves.  Here is Russia’s latest move – ‘Russia wants warships stationed around the world’.