Reassessing War Making in Our Post 9/11 World: Perspectives from Medicine and Public Health

Despite December\u27s association with peace, military conflicts rage around the world. War making is a central element resulting from and contributing to the bleak status of global health, the environment, human rights and ultimately global survival. War is the ultimate form of terrorism and thus ultimately counter-productive to securing peace. To further the search for healthy, sustainable alternatives to war and terrorism, war-making\u27s too often hidden or obscured costs to human and environmental health are reviewed. National priorities are reassessed from a risk/benefit approach utilizing prevention based, medical and public health analytic frameworks including occupational and environmental health, community and mental health and related opportunity costs. Both qualitative and quantitative data are reviewed. Effective, health supporting and ultimately more secure alternative national security policies derived from this broader health based assessment are proposed