President Bush last night addressed a nation that has seldom felt so acutely the anguish of insecurity, conflict, and recession. September 11 revealed that we urgently depend on one another - friend and foe - for our security, peace and prosperity. But even in the view of our allies, the White House has ignored that lesson by pursuing a go-it-alone, you're-with-us-or-against-us foreign policy in the months since 911.

We can all agree that security is essential. But how can we best assure it? With a surplus of firepower but a surge of debts and deficits? With more spies on the hunt but fewer teachers in the classroom? More tax breaks for those who need them least or more health care for those who need it most?

• A strong - and cost-effective - defense: We already spend more than the ten next biggest spenders combined. Now we're being asked to ante up another $48 billion beyond this year's 14% hike, largely for exotic, unproven and treaty-busting weapons systems. Will they buy us real security? Or will they simply make us missile-bound, overbuilt against obsolete threats but helpless against Al Qaeda's low-tech terrorism?
  
  
• True prosperity: The gap between America's richest and the rest of us has reached Third World extremes. The bottom 40% hold no net worth while the top 1% hold 40% of the wealth. Is this true prosperity? Can we accept such vast disparities without igniting the kind of rage that could fuel attacks by our own dispossessed? What would widely shared prosperity do to secure the "domestic tranquility" promised by our Constitution?
  
  
• A healthy and well-educated citizenry: The war on terrorism's first casualties are the public's two highest priorities - health and education. With the return of the deadly deficit, there's nothing left for what matters most to our long-term security as a nation - a healthy and well-informed populace. Our European allies are investing in their peoples' well-being while we invest in weapons. Which of us will lead the world into the new century?

As we evaluate the State of the Union, perhaps we should consider what will make us most secure as a nation?