TWO-YEAR STUDY/ACTION PROJECT ON THE ARMS RACE AND ECONOMIC CONVERSION
“The arms race is by no means an inevitable ‘fellow traveler’ of man in his development. It is generated by the interest and activities of concrete political forces and can be stopped by the opposing forces of the adherents of disarmament. As far as the factors facilitating the arms race are concerned, the considerable superiority of the latter becomes more and more obvious. The treaties and agreements which have been concluded bear evidence to the practical feasibility of disarmament measures in the present historical conditions.”
Archbishop Kirill, of the Russian
Orthodox Church, at the WCC Special
Plenary Session on Disarmament, July 1979
We have all heard the impassioned pleas of those advocating disarmament. We know that nuclear weapons exist capable of killing everyone on the earth 12 times – or is it 13 by now? We have been told of the enormous destructive capacity of nuclear weapons. We have been warned of the potential of nuclear proliferation to increase the likelihood of nuclear war. Dire descriptions of the consequences of nuclear war have been voiced.
Faithful people cannot help but recognize nuclear war as a terrible evil. We are agreed that the development and production of these weapons usurp the world’s physical resources, waste the work of a large number of the world’s scientists and engineers, and steal capital resources from the world’s poor and hungry. The greatest problems before us are a lack of understanding of an enormously complex problem, and a sense of helplessness in attempting to accomplish the seemingly impossible task (the task of complete, worldwide disarmament).
This study/action project will summarize appropriate background information and provide abstracts of and contacts with existing peace groups. It will also suggest specific means for local groups to learn of Department of Defense funded industries and to affect economic conversion.
The Geneva Consultation between the churches of the USSR and the USA (March 1979) stated when they appealed to their governments: “There may be only one answer. There is no other answer and no other alternative. Choose life.” This project will inform us to make the choice.
Goals
The goals of the project are to:
1. inform ourselves of the history of the arms race, and the mechanisms which sustain it.
2. direct the efforts of local groups seeking to find the extent of local economic dependence on Department of Defense contracts.
3. enable individuals and local groups to systematically examine the confusing mass of information available about these issues. This will provide a basis for action.
Implementation
These goals will be implemented through:
1. Study of the issues.
The MIT-LSM group will prepare a booklet which will
-- present the history of the arms race,
-- provide insight into the current military situations, and
-- discuss the military foreign policy of the US and the USSR, and
-- address related theological issues.
This booklet will suggest individual and group actions based on this study.
2. Case studies
The booklet will give examples of groups at work on plans for economic conversion of companies in their localities. Discussion of these examples will provide models of action by individuals and groups. These discussions will suggest methods for learning about local opportunities for economic conversion.
3. Contact with groups currently involved with economic conversion
The booklet will describe national groups working for economic conversion, and provide contacts for individual and group involvement.
Proposed Outline for the Study/Action Plan Booklet
Part I: Study
1. History of the Arms Race and an analysis of the current situation
2. Theological issues
3. Foreign Policy: “Defense Needs and Intentions”
a. Introduction
b. USSR
c. USA
4. Peace Conversions
5. Annotated Bibliography
Part II: Moving to Action
1. Introduction to the Peace Movement
2. How is Your Community and University Involved?
3. What You Can Do and How You Can Do It
Time Frame
September 1979: Assembly of Study/Action project team and start of work on the booklet as outlined in the previous section.
January 1980: Completion of the booklet.
February 1980: Booklet printing and mailing.
March 1980 to August 1981: Implementation by local groups.
Cost
$750 to LSM-USA for typing, printing, and mailing.
Responsibility for Project
Project Coordinators: John Nordin and Carl Sharon
c/o Lutheran Campus Ministry at MIT
312 Memorial Drive
Cambridge, MA 02138
Contributors
Barbara Grosh - MIT ’78 Economics
Lisa Klein - MIT ’81 Political Science
Sandi Hebert - BU Graduate Student in Music
John Winter - Brown ’81 International Relations
and others to be identified in the fall.
Resources
The Rev. Scott Paradise, and the Rev. Jessica Crist, who are respectively the Episcopal and Lutheran Chaplains at MIT.
Also, the Rev. Frederich Reisz, who is pastor of the University Lutheran Church, Cambridge.
We will consult with professors and graduate students at MIT who have expertise in this area of arms control and economic conversion.
Evaluation
A questionnaire will be included in the booklet to aid in evaluation of this project. Evaluations will be compiled by the Study/Action Project Team and included in reports to the LSM-USA Legislative Assembly.
Conclusion
The core of this Study/Action Project Team is composed of the same people who completed the Faith, Science, and the Future booklet. Other interested LSM members will contribute to this project. We anticipate that it will be produced in a format similar to the previous study. We look forward to this opportunity to serve LSM.
The following two Resolutions and Study/Action Projects are continuations from the 1978 Assembly.