I was saddened to hear that Michael E. Williams Sr. of Oakland (letter, May 10) has heard no peace plans from anti-war groups. If one wants to hear something, one must engage in some quiet time and listen.

Rabbi Michael Lerner of the Network of Spiritual Progressives has outlined a Global Marshall Plan, which embraces a policy of generosity that promotes peace.

It is a detailed plan that can be studied online. Just type Global Marshall Plan in your browser. Anyone who remembers the Marshall Plan from World War II will realize that it stabilized Europe after the war. That peace continues today.

Another plan calls for the creation of a Department of Peace. This would be a cabinet-level department with all the status of the departments of Agriculture, Defense and the others.

Through this Peace Department, peaceful resolutions would be explored at the international, national and even local levels. Not only would the lack of war be a goal, but a total culture of peace would be studied to improve the daily lives of all Americans, through the elimination of all violence.

You can learn more about this by contacting Lynn Ellis at www.mained op.org.

Waterville Area Bridges for Peace and Justice supports the above plans and more. Space doesn't allow all of them.

A University of Maine at Farmington sophomore told me the other day, "If we sweat for peace, we won't have to bleed for war."

Peter P. Sirois

Madison