Sustainable Democracy

Lost in the vociferous debate being waged between congressional democrats and the White House over proposed funding increases to the SCHIP program, a children’s health insurance initiative, was the near-unanimous passage of the Department of Defense budget. The bloated, $471 billion spending measure passed with overwhelming bi-partisan support, sliding through the House of Representatives and Senate with nary a voice raised in opposition.

The new defense budget is a near $80 billion increase over last year’s spending measure. It covers things like buying new ships for the navy, pay raises for military personnel, and increasing the rolls of the Army and the Marines. It does not cover the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, the funding for which is contained in a separate, “emergency” spending measure.

These two spending proposals illustrate where the American Government’s priorities lie better than a thousand policy speeches ever could. Just to break it down; congress decides that our country, which already spends a higher percentage of its GDP on defense than any developed nation in the world, needs an $80 billion bump, and no one bats an eye. Yet when someone raises the idea that we ought to be ensuring that poor children can afford to buy medicine and receive the medical care they need, a huge political fight ensues.

Is this what we have become as a nation? Do the American people really value Destroyer-class warships and advanced weaponry over caring for our children? Have we become so callous that we elect to devote more of our resources to stockpiling the tools of destruction over taking care of the most vulnerable members of our society? Do we place the ability to kill over the ability to save lives?

We may be beyond redemption if the answers to these questions are yes. Fortunately, these spending measures do not represent the true will of the American people. Instead, they represent the disconnect between Washington policies and American values. Ask most average people whether we ought to be focusing more on education, health and social welfare, or on stuffing the pockets of defense contractors, and nine out of ten would want us to invest in our people.

The problem is that most people are unaware of our wasteful, reckless policy of ever-expanding defense spending. The reason they are unaware is that it has become uncontroversial in Washington; not only are most elected representatives scared to death of voting against funding for the military, they’re afraid of even discussing it. Anyone who speaks out against buying new billion dollar submarines is suddenly soft on national security, and therefore must want the terrorists to win.

This culture of fear must be reigned in. As we pump an ever-more irresponsible amount of our tax dollars into defense, our social programs, health system, and national infrastructure are deteriorating to dangerous levels. We are witnessing a decline in the essential services provided by our government at a time when tax receipts are at a record high. This neglect must be brought to an end, or we will put our entire society at risk.

A responsible government will invest in the health and education of its citizens. Washington must re-direct their priorities to get in line with what is best for the American people, before it’s too late. Otherwise, we risk becoming a modern-day Sparta, or worse, Soviet Union; pouring our resources into our military at the expense of our citizens’ daily lives.