11 Days of Global Unity Disarmament
We are living at a time when there are over 60 countries involved in military conflict causing record numbers of refugees (65 million). The availability of weapons is often linked to escalations in conflict resulting in tremendous civilian casualties.
And yet, back in 1961, President and General Dwight D. Eisenhower said: "We must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military industrial complex. Disarmament, with mutual honor and confidence, is a continuing imperative. Together we must learn how to compose differences, not with arms, but with intellect and decent purpose."
In this compelling and informative dialogue on the Disarmament Theme of the 11 Global Unity Themes, William Hartung will bring us forward from Eisenhower's speech and discuss with Host Rick Ulfik:
- What are the most important things to know about the evolution and the current state of the Military Industrial Complex?
- The range of much lower-cost preventive Alternative Paths to Human Security and Peace instead of militarism and war.
- How can we get to the point in our society where these alternatives to militarism have more of a central role in resolving and preventing conflicts?
- What is the role of grassroots movements for change? What is the role of the media?
- What can people do in their own lives to help move society towards disarmament and peace?
William Hartung
William Hartung is the author of Prophets of War: Lockheed Martin and the Making of the Military-Industrial Complex (Nation Books, 2011) and the co-editor, with Miriam Pemberton, of Lessons from Iraq: Avoiding the Next War (Paradigm Press, 2008). His previous books include And Weapons for All (HarperCollins, 1995), a critique of U.S. arms sales policies from the Nixon through Clinton administrations. From July 2007 through March 2011, Mr. Hartung was the director of the Arms and Security Initiative at the New America Foundation. Prior to that, he served as the director of the Arms Trade Resource Center at the World Policy Institute. He also worked as a speechwriter and policy analyst for New York State Attorney General Robert Abrams. Bill Hartung’s articles on security issues have appeared in the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, The Nation, and the World Policy Journal. He has been a featured expert on national security issues on CBS 60 Minutes, NBC Nightly News, the Lehrer Newshour, CNN, Fox News, and scores of local, regional, and international radio outlets. He blogs for the Huffington Post.
