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TechnoratiHiroshima Beckons Obama
Just one bomb, dubbed "Little Boy," devastated Hiroshima in a split second. By comparison, the potential destructive power of the more than 20,000 nuclear warheads deployed or stockpiled today by the United States, Russia, France, Britain, China, Israel, India and Pakistan gives bizarre new meaning to the term "overkill" — and proliferation continues.
Under the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, the U.S. puts nuclear weapons in the hands of Belgium, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Turkey. Israel is widely believed to have its own arsenal, North Korea has a test program, and R&D in Iran and reportedly Myanmar threatens to further destabilize already volatile regions.
Today, who does not fear even a single atomic bomb in terrorist hands?
While Hiroshima illuminates the world's darkest forebodings, it is also a beacon of hope — a witness reminding us at every opportunity that nuclear weapons must never again be used. Hiroshima's citizens stand certain in their knowledge of what the "atomic option" really means, and insist that our planet must be nuclear-free, a truth beyond politics or the ideology of nationalism.
This message is now global: Mayors for Peace, a Hiroshima/Nagasaki- initiated international network of local authorities campaigning for the elimination by 2020 of all remaining nuclear weapons, is supported by more than 3,000 cities in 134 countries and regions. Every visitor to Hiroshima and its Peace Museum comes face to face with a history from which we must all learn — or risk repeating.
Who better to visit Hiroshima, witness its message firsthand, and speak to the world's nuclear fears, than the commander in chief of one of the world's largest nuclear-equipped militaries?
Now, as the recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize, U.S. President Barack Obama's visit to Japan on Nov. 12 and 13 offers him an unprecedented opportunity to build already-established momentum toward the abolition of nuclear weapons.
If Obama were to speak from Hiroshima (as no other sitting U.S. president ever has), this would allow the entire world to imagine a future no longer held hostage by fears of cold war, nuclear winter, or nuclear terrorism. As Obama has stated, political will and support for a nuclear-free world first requires imagination. An address from Hiroshima would be bold, historic and compelling.
Obama's groundbreaking April 5 speech in Prague — mentioned by many speakers at memorial events in Nagasaki and Hiroshima this past summer and widely reported in the Japanese media — shows just how closely attuned he is to the essence of Hiroshima's viewpoint:
"Now, understand, this matters to people everywhere. One nuclear weapon exploded in one city — be it New York or Moscow, Islamabad or Mumbai, Tokyo or Tel Aviv, Paris or Prague — could kill hundreds of thousands of people. And no matter where it happens, there is no end to what the consequences might be — for our global safety, our security, our society, our economy, to our ultimate survival.
"Some argue that the spread of these weapons cannot be stopped, cannot be checked — that we are destined to live in a world where more nations and more people possess the ultimate tools of destruction. Such fatalism is a deadly adversary, for if we believe that the spread of nuclear weapons is inevitable, then in some way we are admitting to ourselves that the use of nuclear weapons is inevitable."
Obama showed his determination to confront this vital issue Sept. 24 by chairing a head-of-state U.N. Security Council session that unanimously passed an unprecedented resolution for the abolition of nuclear weapons worldwide. As yet, Hiroshima is not known to be on the U.S. president's November Japan itinerary. He already has, however, received an open invitation from Mayor Tadatoshi Akiba, thousands of Hiroshima's schoolchildren and many hibakusha (atomic bomb survivors).
Such a visit would be well-timed: It would appeal to Japan's eagerly progressive new administration, which has just swept the country's long-dominant conservative Liberal Democratic Party out of office. It would signify to the international community that the U.S. once again embraces a more farsighted and responsible role in international diplomacy.
It would demonstrate at a crucial juncture that the U.S. recognizes the horrific potential of nuclear weaponry (as President Harry Truman showed in his restraint during the Korean War) and is ready to join others, both in Japan and worldwide, in making much-needed efforts to eliminate that threat.
A November "Hiroshima Address" need not dwell on the circumstances of the past. More constructively, it could affirm the potential for everyone to learn from Hiroshima's experience and move decisively toward a nuclear-free future. Here is an opportunity to truly change history, dwarfing even U.S. President Richard Nixon's journey to China — an embodiment of "the audacity of hope," to which millions around the world have responded, and still yearn for.
President Obama, fulfill the promise of your Nobel Peace Prize — speak to the world from Hiroshima!
32 Comments so far
Show AllI have just finished reading the letter and unlike many of the responders, I believe it was beautifully written and I hope President Obama will get the chance to read it... and that by doing so he will be moved to accepting the invitation. While the changes I had hoped would come through Obama are slower then I would like them to be, things are changing and although he may not be able to make all of the changes I would like him to make, I believe he will change some of them. The United States will not change overnight but it will change... and the sooner we accept our responsibility to being a part of that change, the sooner it will happen. Talk is cheap, like evidenced by some here, but how many people are willing to put their life and the life of their family on the line as President Obama has done. That act alone deserves our Respect and Praise. When we are all willing to do the same... than perhaps we will find our way out of the mess we have created by of our own selfishness and lack of concern for others.
Once again, I join the broad consensus in the comments.
I understand that YMMV, but it didn't take long at all for Your Obedient Servant to develop the same aversion to watching and listening to this Unitary Executive that I had for his predecessor.
Admittedly, I never bought into the hype over Obama's supposedly dazzling oratory in the first place. As one who blathers and writes words by the hundreds, I am nevertheless mindful that talk is cheap-- and handsome is as handsome does.
Now that my original doubt and skepticism towards Obama has matured into a settled and resonant antipathy, I'm not likely to be "up" for ANY Gala Commander Performances, to coin a phrase.
And candidly, I don't see how anyone can seriously get excited over a Chief Elected Misrepresentative's scripted and self-conscious History-Making Moments; in an age where authenticity and spontaneity have been purged from politics, such compulsory Occasions are as banal and predictable as kissing babies and pressing the flesh at campaign rallies.
The corporate media commentariat and chattering classes-- including "The Nation" et al-- are PAID to simulate enthusiasm and cheerlead or boo-lead, as the case may be. But why would anyone else care?
But that's me. It's like pro wrestling, I guess. Everybody knows it's fake, but one just has to get into the spirit of the thing, have fun with it, and not overthink it.
· Yr Obd't Servant
Well, your many words echo my thoughts and that of many others here, apparently. I turned out Obama a while back. None of the rhetoric comes close to matching the actions.
It's a bit over 1,000 words, or I'd clip it here.
Google Orwell "You and the Atomic Bomb" for G.O.'s 1945 regrets on the difficulties of proliferation.
It is rather hypocritical of John to pontificate about the dangers of nukes in the hands of unworthy nations. The Japanese on their part did not waste much time in eagerly hosting US nukes. For the last sixty years the Japanese have been blatantly violating their so called peace constitution and are hosts to nuke powered and nuke armed aircraft carriers and subs. It is only in recent times that to avoid bad press they have decided to remove air borne nukes from Japanese soil.
Do you really think they had a choice.
If their "peace constitution" you refer to is still the one written right after surrender, it was written by Americans.
I once interviewed a survivor of the Hiroshima nuclear blast for a journal article. She was in her mother's womb when the bomb exploded, and she was born a short time later. Her whole life, as well as the lives of her entire family and all her friends--were impacted in profound and tragic ways by this singular act of unimaginable cruelty.
When these survivors speak out--and many do not because the trauma is too painful for them to relive--we can hardly bear to listen to them, and certainly cannot comprehend their experiences. What they went through was otherworldly, insane. She told me that she remembered hearing her mother describe the blast and the aftermath this way: It was just a normal day, beautiful and sunny. All of a sudden, there was a bright light that filled the whole sky, followed by a huge boom. Then, complete and total silence, like the whole world had stopped. After that, the black rain began to fall. A bright light and black rain, that's what happened.
It makes me cry as I remember talking with her, and recall her courage and the kindness and respect she showed to me as we spoke.
Many people just like her were killed that day in Hiroshima. Oh!
I think Obama should refuse the Nobel Peace Prize and instead ask that it be given to the survivors and descendants of the atomic blasts at Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Sioux
SURPRISE WITNESS: Moving & meaningful post. What amazes me to a point way past revulsion is that AFTER seeing what Hiroshima/Nagasaki could and did do to HUMAN BEINGS, just like those within our nation's borders, its commanders actually conceived of "doing it again." Our military "leaders" see themselves as gods wielding this awful sort of power. And this explosive/big bang species of murder on so grand a scale is sheer blasphemy to the spirit of life or what most call God. It is so repugnant to the spirit of any who conceive human life (along with animal life and supportive ecosystems) as sacred, as to constitute a form of a carnage that should not BELONG to the human family in any way, shape or form. Because the cause of arms and vast sums of time, money, and wasted genius are still directed at filthy, inconceivable ways to destroy more and more living beings instead of investing in the things that would make for peaceful, fulfilling societies supports my thesis that in America, Mars (god of war) rules. Jesus would have NONE of this, and yet a good deal is done in His name.
We don't want any more bold addresses. We want concrete action.
Well said, all of you.
The US and its allies simply want to continue the "nuclear club," justifying it by claiming that the US has been "chosen" by its invisible friend to "be a light unto the nations."
Kudos to those who in the 1940s risked everything to give US "nuclear secrets" to the Soviet Union - it's a pity the latter is no longer around to keep US arrogance in check.
Sorry to admit, I couldn't make it to the end of this one. Why CD publishes this twaddle I do not know. They could have picked up this piece instead by Ted Rall at his hard-hitting best: http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article23835.htm
You really have to be a low-life bacteria to allow someone who nuked your country to gloat on the same site where so many were incinerated. Because that's what Obama would do, gloat and remind the world "look what happens when you don't do what America wants you to do", despite the beauty and cynicism of whatever phony speech he gives.
The Japanese should have better sense. Hiroshima and Nagasaki were the greatest terrorist acts against humanity in history and to add insult to injury Americans today teach their overweight kids in school that the bombs "saved lives". Perverse reasoning.
No speech, apology or financial restitution could ever compensate for such monstrosity. Ever.
So the CEO of the crumbling empire keeps barking nice speeches to entertain and confuse the peasants?, some people might enjoy the sound of empty promises and revel on the illusion of "hope" and "change" presented by his handlers, but not me im a simple man who believes in actions not in sounds or ideas devoid of meaning other than to keep controlling the mindless consumer drones of the usa.
As long as those born in the usa still get thaught that the mass murder of the people of Hiroshima and Nagasaki was somehow justified and not a WAR CRIME the sword of Damocles will keep hanging over them, the sad truth is most unitedstatians believe their leaders (or "we" as they keep saying even though they hadnt even been born) saved millions of lives by nuking civilians.
If obama had any shame he would accept the invitation to extend a most sincerely felt apology to the hibakusha and their descendants however placing such hope on such a little man would be very naive, besides im sure he is too busy to start apologizing to the very long list of countries and persons who have suffered the "actions" of the terror empire.
Hiroshima is in no way a beacon of hope, but instead a testament to human darkness. It's getting darker every minute.
I wholeheartedly support B. Obama's flowery words and sincere expressions. It's his actual actions that show the true man and his agenda that has me worried.
Read today that the singer Sting says Obama was sent by "God" to clean up the mess.
With all the evidence to the contrary (including his invisible, omnipotent god's existance) I can only conclude that Sting, among all Obama worshippers is an idiot.
Sting must have met up with Mark Morford, who lost me when he began extolling candidate Obama as a Lightbringer, or some such New Age fatuousness.
I hope Sting's prepared to change his name to "Stung".
· Yr Obd't Servant
Gee, this would be the cleansing by fire this time, wouldn't it?
Interesting theology.
Just read the article. Very groan-worthy.
Sting has always been associated in my mind as a fan of with the corporate globalist neoliberals, so his love of Obama is natural.
But it may also be due to the profound misunderstanding and confusion as to the kind of man Obama is among those people on the other side of the Atlantic.
How many members of U2 does it take to change a light bulb?
Just one, Sting.
He holds the bulb steady, and the whole world turns around him.
However, he IS a fairly decent minor talent in the music world, so I suppose that actually does qualify him to comment with authority on world affairsl.
Dude! Wrong band!
Sting's old band was called The Police.
But you can be forgiven for confusing him with the equally self-absorbed neoliberal globo-capitalist rocker Bono, of U2.
pj,good joke though!
- Today, who does not fear even a single atomic bomb in terrorist hands? -
History changed in 1945.
History changed again in 1947, when President Truman sent a nuke-capable bomber around the globe. For the first time, someone had the power to destroy any place on Earth.
How many people have that power today? Here's a humorous look at our future.
'Neighborhood Nuclear Superiority' by Mike Nesmith, 1981
www.motionbox.com/videos/309cdeb41a19e2c0be
The premise of this article is silly liberal twaddle. Obama is a US president. As such, he's interested not in "peace" or "disarmament," but in maximizing US dominance - of which one huge aspect is military superiority. Therefore, there is zero chance of him being interested in getting rid of nuclear weapons, since it would mean giving up a US advantage.
A US president is interested only in blocking OTHER countries from getting nukes, not in "nuclear disarmament" generally.
Another comic statement in the article is "Such a visit would be well-timed: It would appeal to Japan's eagerly progressive new administration, which has just swept the country's long-dominant conservative Liberal Democratic Party out of office..."
- Actually, there is absolutely nothing "progressive" about Japan's new administration. It's quite analogous to the US Democrats taking over from Republicans, which -- apart from superficial packaging & window-dressing -- isn't the least bit "progressive."
The US has military dominance in non-nuclear weapons. Nuclear weapons even things out.
As more and more countries acquire nuclear weapons, or the capability to (quickly) acquire nuclear weapons if they want to, Japan for one example, and the capability to deliver those weapons, getting rid of nuclear weapons will INCREASE the US maximise dominance.
Furthermore, even today, how does having nuclear weapons help maximise US dominance? The US can't use them in Iraq, in Afghanistan. In the event that it starts a war against a country that has nuclear weapons, and the capability to deliver them, such as Russia, or China, it can't use nuclear weapons either. So whom are the US nuclear weapons to be used against?
And the new Japanese administration isn't analogous to the Dems and Repubs, regardless of whether it is progressive or not. Americans need to stop seeing the rest of the world as a mirror of America.
"The US has military dominance in non-nuclear weapons."
Why has not the military dominance of the U.S. allowed it to "pacify" even one city in Iraq, Baghdad?
For the same reason its nuclear dominance is useless "pacifying" Baghdad. For the same reason its nuclear dominance is pretty useless in general, in most situations. If you blow everything up, there is nothing left to "pacify". If you blow everything up, and kill everyone, there is no empire left for you to rule.
Sioux Rose
RFLOH: I hope you read "JFK & The Unspeakable." I don't think you really understand the mindset of that sworn-to-life warrior for whom winning is all. Now winning may mean something sane to you or me, but in the case of these broken beings, as has been codified under the acronym: M.A.D. (Mutually Assured Destruction), that is exactly what they mean and in fact aim for. The fusion of this suicidal form of military prowess now coupled with that of the born-again Christian belief (purportedly held by upwards of 50 million persons, devotees of the Tim LeHaye, "Left Behind" series) in End Times would not shy away from a war that left nothing live in its wake. Many think this EXACT event constitutes God's will! That is what is so scary. That the sanctity of our lives essentially remains under the guise of "security/defense/protection,"but is actually in the hands of those that would toss it to some ego-driven roulette match of the most dire sort.
In the JFK book it becomes quite clear that the military top brass, still pumped up from WWII and "the big one," were quite willing to court a 3rd world war just next door in Cuba, and provoke Russia into a potential nuclear game of "who's the last one left standing."
Joseph Conrad used the title, "The Heart of Darkness" to speak about Africa and some of the creeps down in that region there for the purpose of exploitation. I would say that this "dark heart" concept is our only window into understanding the mindset of too many who not only have chosen the military for lifetime careers, but have managed to step on enough skulls to get to the top of the amoral junk heap. And according to this same JFK book, added to Eisenhower's warning, added to the FACT of what percentage of this nation's $/treasure goes towards the military or weapons' development, it's quite clear who's running the agenda. Obama is a nice-smiling MC, kind of the Black Ed Sullivan to the "really big show" that America, entertainment capital to the world, is presenting. The ones who decide upon the acts do not rule out their own version of a doomsday big bang.
Thanks for the OBama apologetic. Obama has not the testes for peace as demonstrated by his drone strikes on non-combatants, nor for taking on climate change, single payer, or keeping his promises on any other subject. Try getting off your knees for once, and start making demands, not pleas with your soiled begging bowl.
Ah! You've noticed the absence of hanging ones in the guy.