The primary function of a United States Department of Peace will be to research, articulate and facilitate nonviolent solutions to domestic and international conflict. The Department of Peace will facilitate the most cutting edge ways to wage peace. From nonviolent communication skills, to conflict resolution techniques and cultural relationship building, the Department of Peace will employ proven and effective strategies for diminishing violence in our country and in our world.You can follow the work of the Peace Alliance Campaign to Establish a Department of Peace, learn about it, and get involved.
It is time.
My one concern about how the Department of Peace idea gets sold (particularly in the mangled reporting of the Dennis Kucinich campaign) is that people are left with the impression that "oh, they renamed the Department of War the Department of Defense in 1947, so we'll just rename Department of Defense the Department of Peace". Obvious Orwellian imagery appears.
ReplyDeleteThen someone explains that it will actually be involved in promoting diplomacy and non-violent resolution to global conflicts. People will ask, "isn't that what the Department of State does?" Image of Henry Kissinger accepting the Nobel Peace Prize appears.
It's not that it's not a good idea. It's that it's got a lot more PR work ahead of it before the mainstream media treats it as anything other than a joke.