What creates security anyhow?

Katrina Vanden Heuvel, the editor of The Nation magazine, is one of the smartest people I know of. When I read her magazine, I can feel my brain getting bigger. I love how she cuts through all the fuzzy stuff people repeat when they have no sense and no new ideas, and just states things clearly.

As she did here...
http://www.thenation.com/blogs/edcut/390798/butter_over_guns
when discussing the fact that it's time to just stand up and demand that this country stop spending such obscene amounts of money on defense, most of which is wasted anyway.

An interesting point to note in this blog post is where she points out that "military spending has the lowest multiplier effect of any form of government spending." I take that to mean it is the worst bargain for the money.

What she's pointing toward is what Christians have known for a long time: that security doesn't come from the ability to blow people to smithereens. It grows from education which promotes understanding. It grows from the ability to help people who need food and housing and clean water and medicine. It grows from peace and good will to all God's children. As far as I'm concerned, there is nothing in the Pentagon budget that promotes any of that.

So let's stand up and start making a demand for sensible, "defense" spending! Yes, butter! And pre-school, and health care, and scholarships to college, and aid to people around the world that they can really use.