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Washington State Builds Opposition to the War on Afghanistan

By davidswanson - Posted on 31 January 2012

Senate Joint Memorial 8014, requesting a reduction in federal military spending and ending the war in Afghanistan, will be heard in the Senate Committee on Government Operations, Tribal Relations & Elections on Thursday, February 2, at 10:00 AM in the Senate Hearing Room #2,  Cherberg Building, 

This bill sends an urgent message from the entire Legislature and our State that Congress and the President should end the war in Afghanistan and shift our national priorities toward rebuilding the economy, creating living wage jobs, restoring social programs, and protecting the environment.                                                                                                                      The origin House Joint Memorial 4013 is in the House State Government & Tribal Affairs Committee. 
  1. Please attend the hearing and testify in support, if you're able. 
  2. Express your support for this resolution and for moving it through the committee by contacting Senator Craig Pridemore, the chair, and Senator Margarita Prentice, the co-chair, as well as other members of the committee.
  3. Send the Committee an email:  Include in the Subject line “In support of Senate Joint Memorial 8014, End the Afghanistan War”.  Send to Sharon Swanson, Committee Coordinator at  sharon.swanson@leg.wa.gov


    For more info: Nina Laboy - (206)355-4032 seattlerica@gmail.          Ellen Finkelstein - (206) 661-3241   ellen@wwfor.                          Kaeley Pruitt-Hamm - (509) 680-4212  kpruitth@gmail.com


Updated Facts with Suggested Speaking Points:

“Pentagon plan deftly cuts and increases budget” 
Seattle Times Headline Friday, January 27, 2012

“The Pentagon released a budget blueprint Thursday that cuts projected military spending by nearly $500 billion, yet still calls for increasing the base defense budget in all but one of the next five years”
Seattle Times Headline Friday, January 27, 2012

Real budget cuts to the military can provide recovery of State tax revenues that can instead be used to increase necessary “peacetime” jobs that work to strengthen the infrastructure of the country and secure, again, the safety net of our people and future generations.  It is a step that can take the US in the direction of a sustained economy independent of war and the industry of wars.


Powerful members of Congress spoke out and local faith congregations are beginning to come together concerned that U.S. policy in Afghanistan was destabilizing the region and demand that tax dollars be redirected to meeting human needs and jobs, instead.

The Pentagon is proposing to continue eating 60 cents (and more) on every tax dollar in the federal discretionary budget. It’s time military spending took a serious hit. 

The 1994 U.N. Human Development Report on “Human Security” documented that the higher the ratio of military to non-military government spending was in a country, the more unstable and the more vulnerable its people were to lack of health and education. 


Washington State taxpayers have, so far, given over $10 billion in taxes just for the war in Afghanistan, alone.  
The National Priorities Project data reports the following estimates: 
Olympia $64.5 million,  Yakima, $87.3 million, Seattle $990.8 million, Whatcom County $261 million, Chelan County $92 million, Thurston County $406.4 million, Island County 123.9 million. 

Potential future costs, such as future medical care for soldiers and veterans wounded in the war, are not included. These figures also do not include additional interest payments on the national debt that result from higher deficits due to war spending.

Soldiers' regular pay is not included but combat pay is included.

These numbers are based on an analysis of legislation in which Congress has allocated money for war and research by the Congressional Research Service which has access to Department of Defense financial reports.


The withdrawal of U.S. combat forces from Iraq does not mean the end of U.S. funding for Iraq operations. Likewise, the FY2012 budget includes billions of additional dollars for Iraq and Afghanistan funded through the Department of State.

Quotes:

Ranking Member, House Appropriations Committee,  Rep. Norm Dicks (WA). 

“We need to start seeing if we can do this a little faster, I think the American people would overwhelmingly like to see this brought to a conclusion sooner than 2014.” 
Politico, June 02, 2011

House Armed Service Committee, Rep. Rick Larsen (WA), 

“The time is long overdue for the U.S. to depart [Afghanistan].” 
The Seattle Times, March 16, 2011

Republican Presidential candidate, Mitt Romney:

"It's time for us to bring our troops home as soon as we possibly can, only the Afghanis can win Afghanistan's independence from the Taliban."
Republican presidential debate, June 13, 2011

Thank You For Your Support,
American Friends Service Committee Pacific NW
Western Washington Fellowship of Reconciliation

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