Heidi Ausgood
Peace and Conflict Studies
March 7, 2013

The Probabilities of an Aggressive U.S. Peace Building Policy

In February 2007 then U.S. Congressman Dennis Kucinich a Ohio Democrat in the 110th Congress proposed legislation calling for the establishment of a Department of Peace and Non-Violence. The legislation covered a myriad of topics relating to peace and non-violence, but for the purpose of this essay only the area of international relations will be examined.
“We are in a new millennium, and the time has come to review the age-old challenges with new thinking wherein we can conceive pf peace as not simply the absence of violence, but the active presence of the capacity for a higher evolution of the human awareness, of respect, trust, and integrity; wherein we all may tap the infinite capabilities of humanity to transform consciousness and conditions which impel or compel violence at a personal, group, or national level toward developing a new understanding of, and a commitment to, compassion and love, in order to create a “shining city on a hill”, a light of which is the light of nations”.[1]

The Department of Peace and Nonviolence would consist of a Secretary who would be appointed by the President with the consent of the Senate. The department would be staffed by six Assistant Secretaries and one General Counsel who would also be appointed by the president with the consent of the Senate. For the purpose of this essay three roles will be examined; that of the Secretary, the Assistant Secretary of International Peace Activities, and the Secretary for Arms Control and Disarmament. Again the legislation covers myriad of topics relating to peace and non-violence only those duties relating to the development of international peace will be examined. The legislation also call for the creation of a peace academy that would not only train individuals