Department of Peace - Ideas for Change in America

What do you think is the most effective way to turn this idea into real policy? Add your suggestions here for how you think we should run an advocacy campaign to advance the idea – including the overall strategy, messaging, targets, and tactics.

Approach this from the standpoint that people reading this forum already agree with you on the importance of the issue, and are asking "What can we do to help make this a reality?"

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PEACE, eh? I would love Peace in this world, Peace in the Middle East, Peace Here at Home and Peace elsewhere. Unfortunately in Obama's first week in office he has already Murdered what like 20 people in Pakistan, when Obama Ordered the Military to strike in Pakistan Using UNMANNED drone Planes, which makes it even worse. Thats NOT How to Achieve PEACE! We Need to STOP the Killing and Fighting to Achieve Peace! Tell Mr. Obama to STOP killing! Less than two weeks in Office and He Already Has BLOOD on his hands. visit my blog @ http://enemyartistkristofer.blogspot.com

Suggested by kristofeR PASSAGGIO on 01/31/2009 @ 01:43PM PT
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President Obama has come out very strongly to curb Terrorism.Obama has warned Osama to see sense so that the world is cured from the disease of terrorism cancer. All world citizens are with Obama in his fight against terror.
     I suggest that two-pronge approach be adopted to erase terrorism so that it does not get another chance to raise it ugly/destructive head."MIND MENDING" AND "MIND BENDING" should be initiated simultaneously to see the end of terrorism for all time to come.
        MIND BENDING be designed to demolish the mind set,structure and infrastructure etc with which the terrorists function.
        MIND MENDING is an exercise to mend the minds of humans from womb to tomb so that any impulse of violence/terror shall be rejected by their neurons.This calls for Peace Education from the child in the womb and continues not only in play schools/schools/colleges/universities but extend to work places.I have dealt it elaborately in my book of "Peace Technology"(2004) published by authorhouse,Bloomington,Indiana,USA and in my website www.worldpeacetech.com the principles of which when applied globally will germinate sustainable peace and eradicate terrorism from our beautiful and peaceful planet earth.
          I suggest Obama Administration dealing with peace and terror to consider the IDEAS, I have advocated to wipe out the word "terror" from the dictionary of humanity.With this I am sure terrorism can be totally eliminated.This VISION needs strong and committed action; as Obama told in recent interview that "...I am judged by my actions not by words".
Prof.Fani Bhusan Das
www.worldpeacetech.com

Suggested by Prof. Fani Bhusan Das on 01/27/2009 @ 09:37PM PT
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Peace and Defense although related but Peace is more HOLISTIC and touches every part of life.Defence is more curative in nature.But today the human civilization is in such a unmanageable state,curative action will not heal the humanity. It is only PEACE when objectively conceived as convergence of "SCIENCE OF MATTER" with "SCIENCE OF SPIRITUALITY" will be able to solve coflict/violence from individual,community,nation to global level.Once this concept is accepted by Humanity,Defense becomes redundant.Please think why Barack Obama went to Church before going to take oath before 2-3 million people to become the President of USA? It is the spirit of Spirituality every one is imbibed with, which is still not discovered to coverge with "Matter" to prduce sustainable goods and services to benefit the humans all over the world.Today all the products and services in all sectors like economic,social,environmental,technological,health,education etc are unproductive and UNMANAGEABLE.This is why our vision is limited to "Defense" and we are not able to comprehend the power of Peace.America and the entire world today is Unmanageable for which there are meltdowns not only in the sector of economy/market accompanied by high level of violence/terror but in all spheres from individual to global. My perception after listening to President Obama boils down to one thing that his IDEA is "TO MAKE THE AMERICA AND THE ENTIRE WORLD MANAGEABEL" with empathy, mutual understanding etc which are integral components of OBJECTIVE and HOLISTIC PEACE. I therefore developed full conviction that the new Department must be named as "Department of Peace and Non-Violence" and not a part of Defense department.A part is a component of WHOLE but the WHOLE can not be a component of part.Therefore instead of wasting time on war of words let us get down to business and establish "DEPARTMENT OF PEACE & NON-VIOLENCE" to transform the present Unmanageable World to a "MANAGEABLE ONE".Prof.Fani Bhusan Daswww.worldpeacetech.com

Suggested by Prof. Fani Bhusan Das on 01/25/2009 @ 09:16PM PT
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I suggest a petition to be sent to the President's office signed by members of this group,as well as forwarding the petition to your friends.I would like to see this idea really land on the President's desk and be signed into law and become a reality!

Suggested by Heather Koelle on 01/25/2009 @ 05:37PM PT
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This is a marvelous idea! I completely believe that violence solves nothing. This would be change-the right way!

Suggested by Christin Sanders on 01/24/2009 @ 05:13PM PT
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I'd like our nation to better understand the deeper causes of violence and our higher purpose for being... where peace will become a byproduct:

Soul of America
A deeper perspective of who we are

America's Higher Purpose
Few Americans are aware of the higher purpose behind the founding of this nation. We could champion a rebirth of this purpose.

WeNeedaDream.org
Offers many ideas to unite and inspire enemies on a shared vision, a higher purpose, a new American Dream.

Partnership Way
Possibilities for shifting our exhausted dominator paradigm to an energized partnership paradigm

Nonviolent Communication and Consensus
Tools for transforming conflict into win-win synergy

Conscious Evolution
A higher perspective of what's happening

The Work
Seeing the hidden blessing, message, or mirror in the people and issues that trigger us

Legend of the Peacemaker
The Native American roots of our Constitution... and inspiration for today

Messages and images from a higher perspective
Inspiring hearts and souls to higher levels

Suggested by Carl Landsness on 01/24/2009 @ 01:40PM PT
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When I examine the underlying dynamic of our entire global malaise from war to unprecedented global warming, hunger, poverty, poverty-related disease, cultural degradation ... and now an economic meltdown predicted by some to dwarf the Great Depression ... I find that the entirety of this malaise sits squarely on the doorstep of how we have practiced commerce.

This dynamic cannot be separated, as I see it, from the reality that we have created a “patriarchal” world at the level of whole systems from commerce, to education, politics and theology.

This patriarchy has been driven by a mis-perceived need to “dominate and exploit” versus “cooperate and nurture” – and it is this context of domination and exploitation upon which commerce derives and from which education, politics, theology … and certainly war … serve commerce.

Fundamental to sustainable, wholly positive change to any organization - be it a family, corporation, state, nation or this planet as a whole - is that the underlying “context” of serves the wellbeing of ALL Life. In this understanding, we CANNOT expect now to produce a different result for ourselves by merely laying inspiring, ingenious strategies over the top of our existing dysfunctional context.

Nor can we expect that any amount of philanthropy, micro-enterprise, or government support in the world can EVER offset our present dysfunctional context of commerce, for it is specifically designed to “grow itself” (dominate markets and exploit natural and human resources) at exponential rates that will always exceed the ability of any attempt to provide symptomatic responses to its collateral damage.

We seem thus to be looking at the following dynamic factors:

One, that “patriarchy” represents at its core male-based “insecurity” that includes not just males, but as well women who have been socialized to seek success (and thus safety) in the eyes of that world. The forever “leaky bucket” of its insecurity has driven patriarchy’s relentless thirst to “have more” (money, power, fame, etc.), and it is these insatiable levels of greed, exploitation and willingness to “kill” if necessary that have brought us to the doorstep of our present level of global jeopardy.

Two, the choice of a patriarchy – and particularly commerce, sitting at the center of it – to redirect itself from a context of domination and exploitation to one of cooperation and nurturing represents the greatest transformational, non-theological “spiritual shift” in the history of humanity – indeed one that would reach to the core of theological organization and practice itself, including the Vatican, Judaism, and Islam.

Three, this “spiritual shift” represents a “choice-point” on the part of humanity to subscribe to the most fundamental law of Nature – that of “balance” – for Nature will always bring life back into balance, regardless of the excesses of humanity as we are now witnessing. In this commitment to bring ourselves back to balance and serve the well-being of all Life, we will thus, for the first time in human history, experience beyond mere concept the felt reality of “being one” – and not just with humanity or the Earth – but with the Creator Itself of all that is.

Four, redirecting our existing context of commerce in order to serve this purpose requires that we now do business based NOT upon ever-increasing exploitation, domination and measurements of success revealing exponentially greater profit – which, of course, fosters ever-increasing exploitation, etc. – rather upon a context in which we do business based upon; (a) how much good we can do, (b) how much we can stay in balance with Earth and humanity while we do it, and (c) how well we can remain economically viable in the process (which speaks more to steady-state economics than growth economics).

In sum, upon this threshold of seeking “peace,” we must be willing to redefine the very core of our systems – commerce central to all of them – such that we commit ourselves now on all levels to serve the well-being of all Life. For it is undeniably true that peace will never be achieved absent of an enduring experience of whole well-being – a reality that holds true for individuals as it does a global society.

Our challenge to ourselves – not unlike that of JFK in 1963 – is thus perhaps one of asking our selves now, “What is our greatest (soulful) purpose in being here?” – and with answer in hand, to achieve it in the next four years.

Suggested by Lawrence Koss on 01/24/2009 @ 11:42AM PT
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Dennis Kucinich would make a great Secretary of Peace. I hope Obama appoints him to this post, and soon!

Suggested by Judy Pokras on 01/23/2009 @ 05:20PM PT
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Some folks have complained that establishment of a Department of Peace with a Secretary of Peace in the President's Cabinet would be a signal to other nations that we have gone soft, that our dangerous edge is no longer vigilant, that our military is not capable of striking anywhere on the planet, that we might somehow cease to be the world policeman. Unfortunately this only shows that people are not reading the Legislation, do not comprehend wht the Department of Peace would be about.
This is not Orwellian double-speak, nor is it a mask for subversive acts.
Those of us who support this IDEA and its Legislation have no quarrell with the Department of Defense, except in that we hope to appropriate a tiny percentage of its bloated budget to fund the Department of Peace.
We are trying to teach the ways of peaceful resolution of conflict without violence to children, to families, to Cities and States, so that we might cease to battle one another, to kill one another, to frighten and bully one another.
This means education and technique, practice and policy change. It also demands maturity and intelligence instead of brute force.

Suggested by Stephen Zendt on 01/22/2009 @ 11:25AM PT
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When will this cease to become a dream, and actually become a reality? There is plenty of money, industry, and politics behind the defense industry, but seemingly nothing but good will and wishes behind the idea of peace. Unless we work to make war totally unprofitable, and peaceful coexistence and fair enterprise more desirable AND profitable, the concept of a Department of Peace will remain an elusive dream. Ghandi's and King's movements worked to change and overthrow imperial rule and blatant discrimination, but do these techniques work as systems of government? Unfortunately, political dynamics seem to say "no". I totally agree that we need a department of peace more than a department of war (defense). Let's find ways to make it politically feasible, profitable, and pragmatic.

Suggested by Timothy Moe on 01/22/2009 @ 08:57AM PT
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