During this war the largest U.S. Embassy in the world is being constructed in Baghdad. Obviously, we plan to stay there a long, long time. Is this simply for the purpose of establishing democracy? Or is this to gain one more toe-hold for dominating the Middle East? I fear America has become an imperial power.

Rather than being a team player in the family of nations, we seem bent on dominating both space and the entire globe. Over half of our national budget is going for arma-ments and maintaining hundreds of military bases all over the world. We now dominate most of the globe. What is it that makes our government believe we are entitled to call the shots when it comes to international commerce and dictating who gets how much of earth's natural resources?

I have watched with growing concern the evolving power vested in StratCom (Strategic Command), our military command headquartered in Nebraska at Bellevue. Though some say they sleep better at night knowing that StratCom is watching over and protecting us, I wonder if ours is not the sleep of a creeping death. I think of those words of Jesus: ". . .All who take the sword will perish by the sword" (Matthew 26:52). I believe these words are based on sound wisdom verified again and again throughout history. Great Britain's empire, on which "the sun never sits," came tumbling down midway through the 20th century.

The lessons of the Vietnam War seem to be totally ignored. In that war we had at our disposal the most massive firepower of any nation on earth and we were defeated by a people who were determined not to be intimidated by our seemingly superior force. As we continue to fight "the war on terrorism" with ever-increasing force, the number of terrorists continues to increase. Shouldn't that tell us that we're on the wrong track again?

Military space expert, Bruce Gagnon, speaking at a peace conference in Omaha last October, stated that "the objective of the United States' present military policy is full-spectrum dominance." He pointed out that "the goal of the military at present is threefold: 1) Control of the earth through conventional weapons; 2) control of the seas and the earth by the Pentagon; and 3) domination of space by StratCom."

The Air Force's Space Command's motto is "Masters of Space," and should leave no doubt about the real purpose of U.S. space operations. An article published in the November-December 2007 issue of Nebraska Report, the newsletter of Nebraskans For Peace, reported the following: "Now that the Bush/Cheney Administration has renounced the Antiballistic Missile Treaty, U.S. space policy formally authorizes the Pentagon and StratCom to pursue the development of offensive space weapons."

The article also reported that "the president and Congress, after doubling the military budget in the past seven years, allocated $11 billion to test space technology, and it is estimated that another $30 billion is available in the 'Black Budget' of secret military funding. The aeronautics industry is gleefully speculating that 'Star Wars' will be the largest industrial project in the history of the earth."

Though some may say, "So what?" I believe we ought to be asking, "At what cost?" It may well be that such a project will require the dismantling of our nation's entire system of entitlement programs: Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, social welfare and anti-poverty initiatives. The money has to come from somewhere and we are already witnessing many negative consequences from the massive cost of the war in Iraq and Afghanistan. How ironic, how tragic, that because of our expenditures on this war we seem not to have enough money to take care of our veterans' health care and medical needs when they return home.

Could it be true as the late William S. Coffin said: "We are beginning to resemble extinct dinosaurs who suffered from too much armor and too little brain." Our country is relying increasingly on ever more ominous weapons, the nuclear type, and the military is given unlimited power to launch a missile attack on a moment's notice. I fear we are losing our soul. That old adage: "Power corrupts; absolute power corrupts absolutely" (Lord Acton) needs to be heeded by all. Even the best of our own leaders are not immune from this malady.

Nebraskans For Peace has a "StratCom Watch Committee." Recently, it issued a report titled "Top Ten Points About StratCom." This is available on their Web site:nebraskansforpeace.org One of those "10 points" states: "StratCom is fast becoming the 'Big Brother' that George Orwell warned of in his novel '1984.' It's spying on our citizens and infringing on our civil liberties. It's generating round-the-clock spin about threats to our national security and the need for increased military strength. And it's consuming an ever-greater share of the budget for national defense as it pursues a strategy of permanent war. For the 21st century, it's like Darth Vader in the service of Empire."

Could it be that too much power has been vested in the hands of those who manage StratCom and our Pentagon? Is this that for which we want America to be known, i.e., as the dominant power on earth? Is this how we prove that "In God we trust"? I believe it is imperative that more citizens become informed about the purpose of StratCom. A prime opportunity for this is coming up soon.

This next month, on April 11-13, the Global Network Against Weapons & Nuclear Power In Space is holding an international conference in Omaha at Creighton University. Theme of the conference is: "StratCom: The Most Dangerous Place on the Face of the Earth." World renowned experts will lead workshops during the weekend. Among the speakers is Col. Ann Wright, retired U.S. Army and U.S. State Department, Bruce Gagnon of Global Network, and Greg Mello of the Los Alamos Study Group. The conference is open to the public. For information contact globalnet@mindspring.com or Nebraskans For Peace office at 402-475-4620.