James V. Hansen: “It has been interesting as we go through the downsizing of the military, we all realize that this is a necessary thing…”

“It has been interesting as we go through the downsizing of the military, we all realize that this is a necessary thing to do. But the question comes down to how far do we go? We are going through a base closing. We have done a 1991 and 1993. We are looking at a 1995. We are finding out the Pentagon does not have the money to come up with the promises they made as far as defense conversion, as far as cleaning up the toxic wastes, all of the economies of the area. I do not see that money coming about as we first anticipated it would. We have a big backlog. Having sat for 6 years on the Restoration Environment Panel of the Committee on Armed Services, I do not think there is enough money in the whole defense budget to take care of the toxic wastes we see in the various bases, but we are looking at those things. We know every time there is a debate on the floor, people stand up and say the cold war is over. Why are we spending all this money on defense? If I may, Mr. Speaker, I would like to talk for just a moment on the history of what has happened in this country of America where we are all Pollyannas and want to believe the very best. We want to believe that all is well. Peace on Earth, goodwill toward men. No more problems for any of us. Unfortunately, that is not what history tells us. Those who choose not to learn from history seem to relive it. That has been the case of the United States of America.”