DEAR EDITOR:
After reading the weekend papers (and Monday’s Dispatch) and
watching the TV news coverage of the anti-war/peace demonstrations
around the world, I think two other words should be included more
often in the international debate about how to handle Iraq.
DEAR EDITOR:
After reading the weekend papers (and Monday’s Dispatch) and watching the TV news coverage of the anti-war/peace demonstrations around the world, I think two other words should be included more often in the international debate about how to handle Iraq.
The two words are – hope and fear.
Hope because of the millions of people like me who have minimal economic and political power, feeling disenfranchised as the U.S. ramps up for war, are so concerned about the direction the world is taking that we are compelled to stand up for justice.
Hope that the United Nations will lead us on better course where military buildups and the horrors of war are seen as so counterproductive to be immoral.
Hope that the paradigm of God’s love for world will be cherished, if not in my lifetime, at least as our legacy for our children. Simply, a hope we all share for a better tomorrow.
Fear is the operating mechanism now in many parts of the world. Fear is utilized to control people through domination, paralyzing people into inaction or the most extreme of actions. All kinds of institutions and structures, including governments and religions, use fear to accomplish their objectives. This strategy must be challenged by individuals and societies. That is what the marches and rallies were all about.
Yet such demonstrations are only a starting point in the struggle for peace. Overcoming fear and achieving true freedom and security come from the grace of God, and as of now not enough people accept this reality.
Mike Monroe, Gilroy
Submitted Monday, Feb. 17 to ed****@****ic.com
