Today, we honor our nation's armed forces personnel killed in wartime. Future wars may be less likely, following a courageous step taken by the House subcommittee on Energy and Water appropriations this past Wednesday.

In one day, this committee that controls funding for the U.S. nuclear weapons complex voted to eliminate all funds that would have paid for engineering and cost studies for the new nuclear warhead that the Bush administration hoped to put into production in 2012.

This weapon, the so-called Reliable Replacement Warhead, or RRW, if developed, would be the next salvo in resuming a renewed global nuclear arms race. The committee also killed the new plutonium "pit" bomb plant, proposed as part of Complex 2030 the aggressive campaign proposed by the administration to build a brand-new U.S. nuclear arsenal by 2030.

In so doing, these decisions may be an initial step for the U.S. to regain some of its credibility in the world community, particularly as relates to nuclear-weapons issues.

This issue is no longer a political issue, but rather a survival issue. The world is wired for nuclear destruction in a moment's notice, either by plan or accident. Thoughtful voices from all sides have called on world leaders from nuclear nations to move to eliminate nuclear weapons, realizing that they no longer add to our security, but conversely, actually, reduce our security.

In January, Henry Kissinger, George Schultz, William Perry and Sam Nunn, writing in the Wall Street Journal, called on the world to eliminate these weapons. They stated: "The world is now on the precipice of a new and dangerous nuclear era we endorse setting the goal of a world free of nuclear weapons and working energetically on the actions required to achieve that goal." They advised that U.S. leadership will be required to take the world to the next step. Sen. Nunn, advising against the RRW program, stated that, "The U.S. will pay a very high price in terms of our national security if Congress gives the approval to go forward with this program."

Their insight, whether recognized or not, acknowledges that in a nuclear world, war no longer works as a means of resolving conflict because any conflict could escalate to a nuclear holocaust. The challenge before us is to identify, model and promote the means for humanity to live without war.

In the words of Albert Einstein, "I know not with what weapons World War III will be fought, but World War IV will be fought with sticks and stones."

So, on this Memorial Day weekend, what better tribute to those who have given their lives in wartime than to begin the hard work necessary to eliminate war itself as a means of resolving conflict? We must demand that our elected officials, both in the full House and Senate, continue the steps to eliminate funding for these new weapons systems. We must lead by example.

Robert Dodge, M.D., of Ventura, is co-chairman of Citizens For Peaceful Resolutions, http://www.c-p-r.net; president of Physicians for Social Responsibility, Ventura County, http://www.psr.org; and board member of Beyond War, http://www.beyondwar.org.