Common Sense for the Twenty-First Century

“There is No Peace Movement”

52 “There is No Peace Movement” September 11, 2002 Yes, that year has passed. Commendations to everyone who was not silenced by the trauma of the initial attack. Congratulations to everyone who took immediate action for a peaceful and just resolution of the crisis. I especially want to give thanks for the founders of the Coalition for World Peace who established themselves on September 12, 2001 and have been organizing every day for the past year. When George Bush, Sr. unleashed 88,000 tons of bombs on the people of Iraq, he stated, “There is no peace movement.” He was entirely wrong then and his son is entirely wrong today. At the time of the father there were international peace people all over Iraq documenting the terror of the U.S. attacks.Historyhasthetruth.Thebabbleofcorruptpoliticianswillnotstand. Sadly today there are some liberal minded people and even some ivory tower leftists who say there is no peace movement. Their problem is their dependence on commercial media and the commercial media is in a state of severe corporate censorship. Look at the faces of the news anchors. They look like they are telling fairy tales to kindergarten children. Just how much can people prostitute themselves before they conclude that it is not worth the price? Yes, there is a peace movement and it is wonderful to see the participation of the religious community. The Interfaith Communities United for Justice and Peace have been active during this troubled year. They have planned religious and educational events and are working together with the Coalition for World Peace. What a joy to see Rabbis, Imams, Priests, Ministers, Buddhists, Bahai’s and Hindus working, praying and planning together with their conviction that religion must not bless war. I know there is some talk about fascism, but let’s not go there. Let’s not have an abstract ideological discussion. Let’s simply talk about the history of dictatorial practice in concrete terms. Aside from visiting Iraq, I have lived in many Latin American dictatorships . One of the clear characteristics of dictatorships is the use of 53 warm slogans. For example: “Fatherland, Family and Tradition; Kitchen, Children and Church.” These are typical in the mix of dictatorial banter. How about Homeland Security? Now that one sounds like the jargon of Augusto Pinochet Ugarte in Chile in 1973. Let’s look at the logic. Let’s look at the semantics. How about The Patriot Act? That one would sound good in Haiti during the days of Papa Doc Duvalier. It is designed to curtail civil liberties. And what about arbitrary detention of people and their substantive disappearance? That sounds like Guatemala under Rios Montt. Homeland Security will close more medical centers in Los Angeles County. If it were truly security it would insist on maintaining the 15 health centers that are closing. As it is there will be countless preventatble deaths in Los Angeles county alone? This is security? Friends, you must demand that your local legislators work for Homeland Security by demanding federal funds that have been stolen from health care. Don’t let them cop out by saying that the money is not in their budget. They must demand the funds needed. They have been given a sacred trust and must perform on behalf of the citizens of Los Angeles County. The same demands must be applied to city councils and state legislators and the governor. Homeland Security has become one of the great union-busting projects of all time. And what about using Federal Troops to break strikes? That reminds us of Anastasio Somoza Garcia in Nicaragua. In dictatorships, the legislative branch of government is a group of live rubber stamps. Does that sound familiar? American freedom and democracy cannot coexist with an imperial dictatorial presidency. Oh, yes. Dictatorships have prisons full of people. We now have 25% of the prisoners of the world and we only have 5% of the world’s people. In dictatorships, the actual power is the military and its interests. The President becomes a front for a police state. At this time, our military has over half of the budget of the US. Where your treasure is, there your heart will be. Friends we are being destroyed by the virus of militarism and the clear indicator of that is the philosophy of might makes right. This is the only message I am getting from Mr. Bush. So let’s not talk about the ideology of fascism, let’s talk about how dictatorial...