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Worried By Obama's Picks? Support Anti-War Groups
Tens of millions of Americans will prayed for peace as they celebrated Thanksgiving Day, and they will do so many more times during the coming Holiday Season.
Even non-believers will acknowledge that prayer can be powerful - providing measures of solace, insight and inspiration.
But prayer is made meaningful when it is linked to action.
So how do we act upon a prayer for peace?
By acknowledging that, despite all the spin from the Bush administration and its Republican allies and the acquiescence of too many of members of the Democratic opposition, America remains mired in a pair of undeclared wars that continue to cost previous lives of young Americans soldiers and innocent civilians in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Fantasists will claim that the occupation of Iraq has become less horrific, yet the truth is that the death and destruction is merely less reported. Fifteen American soldiers have been killed so far this month. Thirty-three American soldiers have been severely wounded in recent weeks. For Iraqis, the toll is much higher: Hundreds dead, thousands of wounded each and every month. No wonder polling suggests that the one thing uniting Iraqis is a desire for the U.S. to withdraw its troops from that country.
It is now just as bad in Afghanistan, where circumstances have grown dramatically worse. The American death for the year has risen to more than 150 - three times the number for the entire first year of the occupation. Soldiers are being wounded at a rate that is becoming competitive with Iraq. And civilians are being killed and maimed in such numbers by U.S. bombing raids that Afghan President Hamid Karzai, Washington's man in Kabul, warns that battle for the hearts and minds of the Afghan people is being lost. This week, Karzai met with a United Nations Security Council to demand a timeline for the end of the foreign military intervention in his country.
The occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan are not "good wars."
They are neither moral nor responsible.
And they are certainly not necessary.
These military misadventures are in conflict with any sincere prayer for peace.
So how do we act upon a prayer for peace?
By supporting efforts to end the occupations.
The biggest lie of the last few years has been the claim that there is not a viable peace movement in this country. In fact, every state and many communities across the country have peace and justice networks that are doing great work. (You'll find a great master list of organizations on the United for Peace and Justice website.)
From Washington state's Port Townsend Peace Movement to Veteran for Peace Chapter 1 in Walpole, Maine, there are dozens of local, regional and state groups that need support. The Wisconsin Network for Peace and Justice is one worthy recipient of Holiday season donations. The group has been highlighting and supporting nonviolent activism for peace by groups in Iraq, educating Wisconsinites about the fact that the Iraqi people want foreign military forces withdrawn from their country. Online donations can be made at www.wnpj.org.
Nationally, consider Peace Action, which says: "At Peace Action we take concrete steps to promote and more peaceful and just world by building a community of engaged and active citizens. We never forget that it's not the policy, but the people whose lives are at stake that matter most.
"Your money will be use to press for an end to the US occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan. We're reaching out to the millions of Obama supporters who voted for real progressive change to push for reductions in runaway military spending and direct that money to fund human needs."
It is easy to donate online to Peace Action at: www.peace-action.org.
28 Comments so far
Show AllThe conquest and plunder and occupation of Iraq and Afghanistan are not "good wars."
They are 'unlawful' wars.
If our Johnnies ever come marching home again they will be 'unlawful combatants.'
Alas, more No-bell causes and heartbreaking homecomings.
The biggest lie of the last few years has been the claim that there is not a viable peace movement in this country.
The United States "lost" the Vietnam War in Vietnam, not in the streets and college campuses of this country. However, the constant, vigorous demonstrations against that war absolutely enabled someone like Walter Cronkite to tell Americans after the Tet Offensive that it was all over. Even Lyndon Batshit Johnson admitted at the time that if you've lost Walter Cronkite, you've lost the war. Because there has been no contemporary equal of the anti-Vietnam War movement, the MSM, which blows with the wind and will always back what it perceives as a winner, couldn't produce a Walter Cronkite. In fairness, there is no contemporary equivalent of Cronkite, not even Keith Olberman. But if there had been a noisy and active anti-Iraq Occupation movement, there might have been more courage in the MSM (where most people get their news) to call Bush the lying, warmongering, murdering piece of trash that he is and perhaps the country would have turned against the debacle sooner.
This article is useless. It does nothing to dispel the 'fog of wars'. Instead, it continues the mish-mashing together of America's conflicts. This will not cut through the fog that prevents us from seeing and finding the path to peace.
"a pair of undeclared wars"
"The occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan are not "good wars."
"the US occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan"
So are these wars or occupations? The author describes these military entanglements as both. This is unhelpful. Nothing is said that will clarify the situations, whereby a solution can be found.
Congress passed two AUMF's that for all intents and purposes were declarations of war. One was against Iraq (and especially the government of Saddam Hussein). America won this war in 2003 by achieving its war goals. Continuing to describe the current friendly occupation of Iraq as a war only makes it more difficult to work toward bringing all the troops home.
You can't argue successfully against a militarist who insists that 'victory' in a 'war' is just around the next corner, just after the next surge. You can argue that since the war is over the friendly occupation can be brought to an end, by agreement between the two governments.
US troops in Afghanistan (as in Iraq) are there for two reasons. Unfortunately, most everybody, including this article's author, lumps these two missions together and merely adds to the confusion.
US troops are there to support the Afghan government (A UN-mandated and NATO-led mission) but also to fight against al-Qaeda wherever it is found (this is a US-only war). al-Qaeda is our declared enemy in that second war that Congress allowed the President to start, the only 'war' that the US is now waging.
The war against al-Qaeda is popularly known as the 'war on terror'. Bush and the neo-Khans re-named and re-packaged it into a more attractive product for American consumerism.
You want to stop these conflicts? Get America talking about how it can possibly win a war against 'future terrorism' (Congress's words). This war is expanding (remember, it's a global war) - the recent attack into Syria was against 'foreign fighters linked to al-Qaeda'.
End the 'Iraq war' by denying it exists, and work to end the occupation.
Support national conciliation and international consensus and end the occupation of Afghanistan.
But above all, focus on the 'war on terror'. Someone, please ask Mr. Obama how we will recognize victory. Can he conceive of giving a speech to say that al-Qaeda is defeated and no longer capable of future terrorism? That, after all, is the war goal.
Until America decides that this war is insane and unwinnable and decides to support the President in a decision to end the conflict, this war will continue to expand and will engulf us all eventually.
After all, the US military's purpose is to find the enemy and win the war, and they will go on doing so aggressively as long as America is at war and there are enemies to be found.
I found this article quite useful. There isn't any reason to think the author is trying to misrepresent anything as you imply.
It's useful for me to reinforce my realization that anti-war voices need to be louder than ever in order to curb militarism.
I consider that in light of our new presidents extremely disappointing choices since his election, all the energy that my working class neighbors have expended in his behalf, and how disapointed they would be if they understood that Obamas recent steps equate to not much "Change" in Washington D.C.
The task now for anti-war people is to engage Obama voters.
I intend to do this as tactfully as possible, and keep the noise level down. Thankfully, I expect rational arguments will be easier to convey to (what passes for) the left-wing in the U.S.
Provided that activists work their butts off, I believe important things like ending the war(s) and single-payer health are actually doable during this administration.
Now turn off your computer and go talk to real people about peace.
~t
Member Veterans for Peace Chapter 156:
Now walk the talk and join us in our demonstration in front of the county courthouse twice a month!
"If you want Peace, work for Justice" Pope Paul VI
Why so in four years they cave in endorse him as the lesser of two evils.
This article is just more pablum for the people. Anyone who's paying attention knows that Iraq and Afghanistan aren't the root problem but the symptoms of a problem that goes much deeper.
The US has the most powerful military machine ever created, more powerful and potentially destructive than the Roman legions, Mongol hordes, Alexander's and Napolian's and Hitler's armies all put together. The US possesses literally 1,000 times the firepower used in WWII.
And we're not afraid to use it. Like someone with a vicious pit bull, the animal must be unleashed periodically to maul one of their neighbors.
Ultimately, it's about power and wealth: the power of the few to dominate the many, to retain unjust privilege.
Here's what one of America's post-war architects, George Kennan, had to say: "we have about 50% of the world's wealth but only 6.3% of its population ... In this situation, we cannot fail to be the object of envy and resentment. Our real task in the coming period is to devise a pattern of relationships which will permit us to maintain this position of disparity..." --George F. Kennan, Policy Planning Study 23 (PPS23), Foreign Relations of the United States (FRUS), 1948
So Nichols says "Tens of millions of Americans will prayed for peace as they celebrated Thanksgiving Day, and they will do so many more times during the coming Holiday Season. Even non-believers will acknowledge that prayer can be powerful - providing measures of solace, insight and inspiration."
And support the peace groups that will "push for reductions in runaway military spending," that is, let the runaway spending continue, just slow it down a little.
Translation: Turn off your mind, turn off your conscience, give a donation to a "peace" group, and consume to the max.
Maybe some will see this as pablum, but I think you miss a big point. Most of our nieghbors are not paying attention. I agree with your post, but I won't bother to relay those facts in the way you present them, because I've tried and found that it scares my liberal friends.
I'd like to completely do away with the US' culture of militarism, but liberals are not revolutionaries, so I will take it one step at a time when talking to people who supported Obama.
great, scare the liberals.
then what?
seriously, do either of you have any rational plan to achieve some justice, or are you just feeling grumpy?
I'm too old to play with internet troll types.
jonabark
So what do you propose that citizens do? Most who frequent this board and certainly John Nichols knows as much as you about the history of American militarism and economic exploitation. Perhaps you think something magic will happen without your participation and help. How will the peace message spread without advocates and organization?
What do I propose citizens do?
First and foremost, learn enough to see beyond the mythical world created by the MSM, most of our politicians, and the American ruling class for whom they work. Listening to Noam Chomsky is an excellent place to start. Here's a recent piece: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dabmw-MSnuU
I admire Chomsky because although he sees the evils we face, it hasn't diminished his faith in the decency of ordinary people. I don't see him as a pessimist, but as someone with a more realistic view than 99.9% of Americans.
Second, don't expect that a $25 dollar contribution to Peace Action is going to turn the US into a peaceloving country.
Third, at least recognize the radical alternatives, like withholding taxes or civil disobedience, or reducing one's income to a non-taxable level. (Check out the book Downwardly Mobile for Conscience Sake.) These are my heros. Without a few courageous and morally upright individuals, the US will continue to sink deeper and deeper into the moral muck.
http://www.abraham-hicks.com/video/Aligning_With_Your_.html
Throwing money at irrational, ineffective, status-quo-supporting groups of people who "mean well" makes absolutely no sense. We've thrown millions of dollars at cancer research, and where has that gotten us?
If you really want to stop these (and future) wars of American Empire aggression, it's simple - (1) Stop paying for them with your tax dollars, and (2) Stop supporting the volunteer, American Empire's troops.
"For Iraqis, the toll is much higher: Hundreds dead, thousands of wounded each and every month." And just who are the persons directly responsible for this carnage? And who are the persons actually paying for these wars of aggression?
The answers are easy, but the vast majority of anti-war groups cannot bring themselves to rock the boat too much. They are, after all, still caught up in the system - and they might become too uncomfortable in their lifestyles to effect some real change.
Blah, blah, blah. "Send us money". And down into the rat hole it goes. Totally 100% ineffective.
"Peace" groups: Useless as teats on a boar hog.
Cynicism - Useless as teats on a boar hog.
And your plan?
Joe
There is a state by state listing of organizations with contact information keep a link in case ...
Peace-Action totally supported Obama during the election. They didn't support Nader or Greens (did anybody?) Why are they backstabbing the very man they helped elect?
I think Mahatma Gandhi figured the peace process out:"BE THE CHANGE YOU WANT TO SEE IN THE WORLD".My interpretation would be: LET THERE BE PEACE AND LET IT BEGIN WITH ME.
"Even non-believers will acknowledge that prayer can be powerful."
Sorry, I don't! I think prayer is simply misguided people talking to themselves, people who confuse wishful thinking with reality.
Religion is a major cause of our world's many problems, not a solution.
www.dangerouscreation.com
Instead of connecting prayers to religion think of you thoughts as energy of change. There is nothing misguided about it at all, it has been scientifically proven. See: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DfPeprQ7oGc
This explains it most perfectly..... http://www.abraham-hicks.com/video/Aligning_With_Your_.html
I have a list of anti-war groups in the links section of my Smygo mailing-list. I hope it's useful.
--
Dan Clore
Smygo: News & Views for Anarchists & Activists:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/smygo
Eyrie of the Arch-Anarch:
http://www.nolanchart.com/author341.html
Major "anti-war" groups, and especially John Nichols, cynically manipulated public opinion to torpedo real anti-war candidates and give the Democratic nomination and the presidency to hawkish Obama.
Now the wars continue, and the anti-war groups continue asking for our "support" (dollars). Connection?
War on Terror? I think the language is incorrect. The definition of Terrorism means one does not know just who the enemy is and the battleground is undefined. That's why they call it Terrorism. I don't believe there can be any such thing as 'war on terror'.
Our Government invaded and occupied Iraq in order to pursue another agenda. That it was a 'war on terror' was just a smoke-screen.
We can't blame the soldiers for the illegitimate political agenda of our government.
hi. i'm just demonstrating commenting to a newbie.
for peace and sustainability
still demonstrating commenting
for peace and sustainability