What's New

Reading the recent article in the New York Times Magazine, "Will Israel Attack Iran?", you might begin to think a war with Iran is inevitable and coming very soon. But no war is inevitable until it is underway, and there are real diplomatic solutions to the escalating crisis with Iran.

The President's State of the Union speech last night focused on getting the economy back on track. That's good. That's where most of us live. We know that nothing in our future is secure if we don't have jobs, homes, education for our children, and an ability to adapt to changing demands. We want solutions.

The President offered a number of fairly specific steps forward -- most of them more "supply side" than I would have expected -- but they might work. His attention to small businesses that create jobs here, and recommendations to end the incentives for multinational corporations to export jobs overseas were positive. Small business owners we've talked to, however, have emphasized that a high percentage of them are in service industries that serve local customers. If they don't have customers, all the tax breaks in the world can't help them to hire more people. So we need to be sure more people have jobs and incomes. Small businesses need more customers.

Supporting a move toward manufacturing to encourage renewable energy development would create some of those jobs and help to support the "demand side" of the equation that small businesses (and others) need. But it takes a while to get a new industry ramped up. What happens in the meantime? I missed hearing a commitment to those still struggling with the financial tsunami that washed over this country (and the world) over the past few years...those who still can't find jobs... those who haven't yet completed the skills training and education that the president rightly promoted. Those who were already poor before the recession. I didn't hear a commitment to unemployment insurance and to basic income assistance for those on the edge and those who are below our country's official definitions of poverty. One in five children in poverty -- in this country. Can we live with that?

President Obama finished his third State of the Union Address the same way he began it—by touting what the administration considers foreign policy successes. “For the first time in nine years, there are no Americans fighting in Iraq” President Obama said, concluding his address by stating, “Ending the Iraq war has allowed us to strike decisive blows against our enemies.”

This kind of rhetoric is incredibly unfortunate. The logic contained within these thoughts says that force has worked to end wars when it has, in fact, failed to deliver long term peace and stability. We can clearly see this playing out in Iraq today—not to mention, as I wrote in December, the U.S. war in Iraq may have concluded, but the long term damage is far from done running itscourse.

Yesterday, the International Criminal Court (a multilateral body dedicated to holding perpetrators of mass atrocities accountable) announced that four of the six Kenyans suspected of inciting post-election violence in 2007-2008 will head to trial. Though the road ahead is long, the decision is a step toward justice – and another demonstration of Kenya’s progress toward peace.

In the aftermath of Kenya’s electoral crisis, many both within the country and outside it called for perpetrators of violence to be held accountable. The Kenyan government initially pursued a domestic tribunal, but efforts failed to pass in Parliament. When little had been achieved almost two years later, the International Criminal Court (ICC) began an investigation of the post-election atrocities; since then, the process has been one fraught with controversy.

On Tuesday a nation-wide gathering of the Occupy movement gathered at the Capitol to share their messages with members of Congress. Former program assistant Jessica Halperin and I joined the General Assembly at noon on the Capitol's west lawn, mic-checks and all.

Unlike many demonstrations here in Washington, the gathering didn’t stop at the Mall. Organizers passed out directories, marked congressional office-buildings with color-coded flags, and encouraged everyone to visit to their representatives’ offices. They are weaving together the powerful narrative that yes, what Congress does affects our communities in Baltimore, and yes, it's worth saying something about it.

In this week's e-newsletter: test your knowledge with our Pentagon budget quiz, what our communities could buy instead of war, Iran in one minute, Spring Lobby Weekend, welcome to a new staff member, Kenya, and more.

This blog post is a special edition guest blog written by Asha Warner, who volunteered at FCNL this winter. One of her projects was to call all of our Letter Writing Coordinators to learn how to improve our letter writing campaign. She reflects on the experience of talking with our coordinators and hearing their stories.