“Have those people who support this war ever been at the receiving end of a bomb? Do they know what war is? War is: your house is gone, no water, no electricity, your roads are blown up and….your family is dead.”
The conversation started not about war, but about Peace.
We had just come from a planning meeting to discuss planning the plans for a “Peace Event.”
I am usually restless, squirming in my chair, at peace meetings.
This night was a particular challenge, as a decision needed to be made as to whether this event was going to be about ‘Creating peace within ourselves, as a way to greater peace’ or ‘peacefully demonstrating against our military culture’.
It was a lively discussion, no decision was reached.
It was the conversation afterwards during dinner that resonated.
D.F., my 87y/o WWII veteran friend, knows struggle; WWII, the Labor Movement, Civil Rights, he has been around.
Over dinner he puzzled, “Have those who support this war ever been at the receiving end of a bomb? Do they know what war is? War is: your house is gone, no water, no electricity, your roads are blown up and….your family is dead.”
He wasn’t looking for an answer more stating reality for those of us who did not truly know war….which was everyone at the table besides him. After a complicated meeting about Peace I think he didn’t want us to lose sight of why we were doing it.
“Sometimes people use the call to inner peace as a reason not to take action against injustice, let’s not do that,” he added.
Later he suggested, “We don’t really know how to act together as a society. The Cold War scared people, taught them to shut up, not question or challenge government, and look where it has gotten us.”
Then he went on to ask/state, “How do you hold your candidate accountable when he falters in a way that improves his candidacy and does not give ammunition to his opponent?”
We did not come up with a concrete answer to this question over chopped steak (his) and a veggie reuben (mine).
As we left he smiled at me, wonderful lines of wisdom creasing his face. “Call tomorrow and we’ll work on the unanswered question,” he said with a wink.
What is the point of this diary? I am not sure, it is my first on this site. I am just happy to share some insights from a wise old friend with anyone willing to listen.
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I suggest posting a tip jar. (Pony jar?)
But in response to your deeper question: my father died just a few weeks before his 88th b-day. All the time I was growing up he voted GOP. But he was also a WWII vet (European Theater).
When I left NYC and moved in with him because he lived alone: he was outraged at what Chimpy has done. He was getting more liberal by the minute until he passed away: and it wasn’t all my influence: he could see how the GOP was destroying every good thing about this nation.
Just my 2 cents. Please forgive the rant.
… and it could be the answer to the question of:
… in the sense that it takes a movement to hold a candidate accountable. The Movement Conservatives can do that … look for more flip-flop-flips from McCain as he flip-flops on primary positions in reaching out to swing voters, and is then chastised and flips back to the primary position.
that there should be an argument, presumably, about whether we should focus on inner peace or outer peace. Actually it is both depending on whether we are introverts or extraverts. We each have a different style. But the end result is the same. We pursue external peace as a discipline to achieve inner peace. We pursue internal peace as a discipline to achieve external peace. The more inner peace the more we become disciplined workers for peace–the more outer peace the more we create a world where people can find inner peace. If you work externally without working internally you get into pettiness and end up with petty tyrannies and you have no inner strength to draw on when the going gets tough. If you work internally without working externally you make no progress (there are exceptions here–some people just need to sit in the forest and create positive vibes).
What we need is a container, an organization or organizations that are sensitive to the need for inner work (Jnana Yoga) and outer work (Karma Yoga) and at the same time providing a focus for our love and dedication (Bhakti Yoga).
Having said that, America’s love of war and violence comes from the obsession we have with fantasy. In short, Americans as a whole are living in a dream-world.
that is the question. I think a lot of the dialog on the left is about just this dilemma. How can one have inner peace while the world around is raging and on fire with hatred fear and all the other nastiness. I guess you need both. The Quakers have always amazed me as they have done both. Nice first essay thanks.
and many thanks for this essay. i very much enjoyed being able to listen in on this engaging conversation between you and your friend. more would be welcome by me, anytime, also.