Give peace a chance

It seems appropriate that I would be writing about peace of the 25th anniversary of John Lennon's death, though the timing is a coincidence. The topic of "world peace" has been on my mind since grinningthefool's post on wishes a day or two ago.

Let's say, for the sake of discussion, that we define "world peace" as the international lack of wars and terrorism. War and terrorism are both defined as violence involving at least one country. So, a "gang war" on the streets of a city is not included in our definition, for they are two non-political bodies fighting each other, but a terrorist action against the citizens of a country is included, because it is violence against that country.

Is world peace desirable?

It seems fashionable to argue that war is an ugly but necessary part of the world. That it serves a greater good that can not be served by any other means, or that it is so much a part of human nature that we cannot get rid of it, so we might as well accept it.

I refuse to believe that.

I don't know much about my family's part in the wars. I know my Mom's father, my Opa, fought in WWII, and that his wife, my Oma, had a part as well (I've seen a picture of them in their uniforms). My Dad's father, Grandpa, couldn't fight because he had a lung problem that excluded him from military service. Russ has told me some stories about his family's parts in WWII in particular, but those aren't my stories to tell. Russ didn't have the same grandfather he would've if his grandpa hadn't fought in the war.

In my middle school history classes, we saw a lot of movies about World War Two, especially about the atrocities commited by the Nazis. I felt sick after, unable to handle the images of death and torture that were burned into my brain. But, even more then that, I struggled with the depth and breadth of the horror and the loss. All of a sudden, all the ways in which war hurts people came home to me. It was a horrible picture: young men killed; parents grieving for their son, who should have outlived them; women left widows before they hardly had a chance to be wives; people who came back not quite the same... There is no way we can consider life to be sacred and give in and accept horrors on this scale.

The causes of war are obviously complex, but I refuse to be a defeatist, and I refuse to believe that we aren't capable of something better then killing each other. After all, most of us learn as children that violence won't solve anything, that hitting people is wrong and that it is good to share.

Violence won't solve anything: "Use your words", countries of the world! Countries (and cultures, and religions) can remain different from each other. Diversity can be embraced. The end of war will not be the end of conflict; it will be the end of solving conflict by blowing each other up. Not to be naïve, but I do believe people can be capable of finding peaceful solutions, given the tools to do so. These tools include competent diplomats, impartial mediators, and an informed and active citizenship (that includes us).

Hitting people is wrong: And hitting them back isn't any better. Though war may be necessary again, as I believe it was when Germany invaded other countries in the lead-up to WW II, preventing war should be considered preferable to slapping a poorly behaved country into submission. Our best tool in war prevention: freedom and resources for all citizens of the world.

Citizens who have food, clean water, health care, roofs over their head and who feel secure and safe do not want to go to war. People with hope for the future and a feeling that they are able to achieve their dreams do not want to go to war. It is people who are scared, hungry, hopeless and impoverished that think that war is a solution. When people live without security and without freedom, they are vulnerable to the selfish beliefs of their leaders.

It is good to share: It has been predicted that the wars of the future will be fought over resources, like water or oil. There is only so much the world can give us, and the world cannot support everyone at our current (North American) standards. The rich need to share with the poor; we have to voluntarily give up some luxuries so other people can eat and get clean water. We need to find new ways of doing things that will support sane growth and more international equality. And we need to share information. The more open- and peace-minded people talk to each other, the more respect they will have for each other and the more they will seek peaceful means of conflict resolution.

Maybe we should let a bunch of kindergarten kids run the world, before they unlearn these lessons.