Statements>
Calvin Miller
Professor of Geology

The first-strike policy espoused by our administration runs counter to our national interests, and it is contrary to American, Christian, and universal values. We lose our moral credibility when we claim the privilege to act in ways that we would never tolerate in any other country. Perceived and indirect threats must be dealt with through action that is consistent with international law and in concert with the world community - that is, in the way we rightly expect other nations to behave. Just as we attempt to use diplomacy to prevent India and Pakistan from attacking each other and expect the world to act together to mute the threat of North Korean nuclear capability, so we must work through the world community to limit or eliminate potential dangers posed by Iraq.

The cost of war in human life and suffering, as well as economically, more than balances the likely costs of actions that Iraq may take; the costs of US-enforced war are even greater in terms of destabilizing the world and destroying our avenues of future cooperation. We and the world are suffering from policies established by people who have carefully avoided war on a personal basis and therefore have no sense of or concern about what it means.

About the Peace Forum:

The Peace Forum at Vanderbilt is a group of Vanderbilt faculty, staff, and students committed by teaching, discussion, research, and publication to the alleviation of conditions that breed violence and despair, to the peaceful resolution of conflict, and to the pursuit of the positive fruits of peace.

www.vanderbilt.edu/peaceforum
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