In the late 1990s the Brookings Institute undertook an extensive study of how much money the United States had invested in developing its nuclear arsenal. In 1998 $35 billion was spent by it on its nuclear weapons. In a world racked by poverty, the value of moneys involved illustrates the moral need to switch our focus from developing weapons of mass destruction to more productive and humanitarian efforts. Across the party political divide, we would all agree we need to see a move from armaments to nourishment. Taxpayers' money must be diverted to areas in which it can be compassionately, reasonably and productively used.

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