Mr. President, you asked for a plan.

Mr. President, 

At a campaign stop in Springfield, Missouri on November 3, Mr. President you asked democrats, "What's your plan?"  Mr. President you went on to state that, "The truth is the Democrats can't answer that question."  (Click Link)  I propose this plan; it is only a start from my limited knowledge that is open to input and criticism of any.

1.)
The forty-one recommendations of the bi-partisan 9/11 Commission Report have not been enacted. In December of 2005 the 9/11 Commission report graded the progress of the implementation of their forty-one recommendations to defend the United States against terrorist threats. Twenty-eight of the forty-one recommendations were given a progress grade of C or bellow—including two "incompletes" (Click Link ). It is alarming as to the simple steps that have not been taken while we find ourselves invading countries. If I may be frank for a moment, I am tired of hearing the president remind us that we are “safer but not yet safe,” especially when these bi-partisan recommendations have not be implemented.

2.)
We, the United States, must begin disarming our own nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction. It is widely accepted that we have a large enough nuclear arsenal to destroy the world one and half times. No hands are the right hands for weapons of mass destruction—this includes our own. We cannot maintain our nation’s strength through fear.

3.)
We must invest in the development of new and alternative means of energy. In other words—it is time to move beyond oil. If you do not think that this conflict is to some degree about oil I give you President Bush’s own word from his September 15, 2006 press conference.

“Imagine — imagine an enemy that can't stand what we believe in getting a hold of oil resources and taking a bunch of oil off the market in order to have an economic punishment. In other words, they say, you go ahead and do this, and if you don't, we'll punish you economically.” (Click Link ).

We have become dependent on foreign oil. Here is one of a few reasons why many of the people in these nations that support terrorism hate the United States: we have and are using these countries for oil and giving very little in return. This is why so many around the world see us as an imperialistic nation. We take only action to ensure access to resources for our own country.

4.)
Finally, and what I believe to be the most key part: we must overcome global poverty and foster economic development in growing nations. We must build economic infrastructure in these underdeveloped or developing nations in South and Central America, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. We as the wealthiest nation have a responsibility to provide food, clean water, vaccines, and essential health services to the impoverished people of these nations. We must help build schools, highways, clean energy plants, hospitals, and other capital resources as an investment in the economic growth of these nations. It has been argued that American industry and corporations give many people jobs in these nations, but we give them jobs with dismally low wages in which people cannot afford adequate nutrition and living standards that even sustain life. We must remember that the people of these nations are both an economic capital resource essential for growth and stability and even more paramount—each person in every nation is a human being that has a life God personally created.

Look at how this applies to Iraq. We must shift our efforts from policing to economic development through the creation of capital resources. For example, we must build highways, schools, and hospitals in Iraq. The capital resources then will be for the people of Iraq to decide how to best utilize. Basic economics shows that these capital resources will allow strong future economic growth in Iraq. Yes, it is going to cost money, but what are we saying if we are so willing to pay the price of fighting terrorism in blood but not money? Countries like Iraq and even Iran have a right to economic growth. In regards to Iran, I think that it is possible to reach a compromise in which Iran can develop nuclear energy as means for the economic development of its sovereign nation. I know that conservative readers right now are asking, “but they’ve said they want to blow up Israel!” I ask what does an Iran—specifically an economically strong Iran—stand to gain through a nuclear extermination of Israel? Certainly Iran must know that if they attempted to violently destroy Israel, the rest of the world would very efficiently do the very same to Iran.

Let me support this call to economic development with a an assertion I will make based off of a 1956 journal article titled, “Comparative Political Systems,” by political scientist Gabriel Almond. Economically weak nations that are in the process of development and that encounter Western influences see rapid and large formation of charismatic political interests, i.e. terrorist groups. Iran, Iraq, Sudan, Afghanistan, Venezuela and so on are all in state of economic transition. These nations are being yanked forward from their former state as pre-industrial societies based on smaller more isolated groups of people and agrarian economies by the post-industrial societies of the west. Transitions from pre-industrial, through industrial, and to post-industrial economies are often a violent and difficult journey—look at America’s own tumultuous and at times horrific history (destruction of the Native American people, civil war, urbanization, civil rights, etc.).  Consider the great tensions that must arise in any pre-industrial or industrial society that is faced with post-industrial products such as McDonalds and the Internet to name a couple.

Let me say it very clearly, we must take care of global poverty and generously help the growth of economically developing nations. I firmly believe that global poverty is a pro-life issue. I wish conclude with the words of my loving Father, my God, as His words are the only source of truth and life.

“On the contrary: ‘if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this you will heap burning coals on his head.’ Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” Romans 12:20-21 (NIV)

Tackling global poverty is a great place to start overcoming evil with good. May we begin to love every single person in this world, even those who we call enemy. The truth is, because of each of our own sin, we all were enemies of God. In a sense we are all in the same sinking ship. Yet, God loved us so much, including the ones we may call “enemy,” that He sent His only Son, Jesus Christ, to pay the price so that each one of us may have a relationship with Him because every person matters to God. Every person matters to God, therefore every person matters.

Mark A. Olson