Projeya Lêkolînên Lêkolînê ji bo Peacemakers

“Naturally the common people don’t want war; neither in Russia, nor in England, nor in America, nor in Germany. That is understood. But after all, it is the leaders of the country who determine policy, and it is always a simple matter to drag the people along, whether it is a democracy, or a fascist dictatorship, or a parliament, or a communist dictatorship. Voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is to tell them they are being attacked, and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same in any country.”- Hermann Göring

“In the course of history, there comes a time when humanity is called to shift to a new level of consciousness, to reach a higher moral ground. A time when we have to shed our fear and give hope to each other.” – From Wangari Maathai’s Nobel Lecture, delivered in Oslo, 10 December 2004.

When the rich wage war, it’s the poor who die. - Jean-Paul Sartre

As long as war is regarded as wicked, it will always have its fascination. When it is looked upon as vulgar, it will cease to be popular. –  Oscar Wilde, The Critic as Artist (1891)

Aqilek li aştiyê, zêhniyetek navendî û ne ku li zirarê bide yên din e, ji her hêza fîzîkî ya gerdûnê bihêztir e. - Wayne Dyer

It is time to abolish nuclear weapons.  This is not just the position held by pot smoking hippies.  George P. Shultz, William J. Perry, Henry A. Kissinger and Sam Nunn made this plea in the Wall Street Journal on January 4, 2007.  One miscalculation will lead to nuclear war, nuclear winter and life’s extinction on earth. – Ed O’Rourke

It would be naive to think that the problems plaguing mankind today can be solved with means and methods which were applied or seemed to work in the past. – Mikhail Gorbachev

What we need is Star Peace and not Star Wars. – Mikhail Gorbachev

To plunder, to slaughter, to steal, these things they misname empire; and where they make a wilderness, they call it peace. –
Tacitus

The surprise is that there has been zero detailed research showing how the military industrial complex pulls the big con in history: telling us that war is glorious and necessary.

Pêşverû pêdivî ye ku karê firotanê ya hêja ya ku ji hêla propagandaya hukûmetê ve hatî çêkirin nas bikin ku şer pêwîst û birûmet e, mîna lîstikek futbolê. Werzîşa şer mîna hilkişîna çiyê an jî avjeniya deryaya kûr e, ji jiyana rojane pir xeternaktir e. Mîna ku di lîstikek futbolê de, em ji bo ku aliyê xwe bi ser bikeve ji ber ku têkçûn dê encamên felaket bi xwe re bîne. Di Şerê Cîhanê yê Duyemîn de, serkeftinek ji hêla Hêzên Axis ve dê koletî ji bo her kesî û tunekirin ji bo gelekan bîne.

As a teenager (born in 1944), I saw war as a great adventure.  Of course, a fellow could get killed.  In the comic books, movies and documentaries, I did not see burn victims nor injured soldiers who lost limbs.  Dead soldiers looked like they were asleep.

Hans Zinnser di pirtûka xwe de, Ras, Lice û Dîrok, bêhntengiya dema aşitiyê wekî sedemek ku mêr piştgirîya şer dikin destnîşan dike. Wî mînakek hîpotetîk nîşan da ku zilamek ku 10 salan di heman karê firotina pêlavan de xebitî. Tiştekî ku li hêviya wî bû tune bû. Şer tê wateya qutbûna rûtîn, serpêhatî û rûmetê. Leşkerên eniyê rêhevaltiyê li tu cihekî jiyanê nedîtin. Ger hûn werin kuştin, welat dê bi hin feydeyan rûmeta malbata we bide.

Those who make the movies, songs and poems do a top-notch job showing war as a contest between good and evil.  This has all the drama involved in a close sports event.  I remember the 1991 season for the Houston Oilers reading something like this every Sunday morning in the Houston Post:

Lîstika vê nîvroyê ya li dijî Jets dê şerek kûçik be. Rêbertî dê pênc caran biguhere. Tîma serketî dê bibe ya ku herî dawî, belkî di deqeya paşîn de golek tomar bike.

The sports writer was correct.  With excellent plays on offense and defense on both sides, the fans see a nail-biting game.  In the last three minutes and 22 seconds in the fourth quarter, the Oilers are down by five on their own 23 yard line.  At this stage, a field goal will not help.  The whole field is four down territory. They must march down field and march they do.  With some time on the clock, they do not have to throw on every down. With seven seconds left on the clock, the Oilers cross the goal line with the game’s final touchdown.

The best war propaganda ever made was the 1952 NBC series Victory at Sea.  The editors reviewed 11,000 miles of film, prepared a stirring musical score and narrative making 26 episodes lasting about 26 minutes each.  Television reviewers wondered who would want to watch war documentaries on a Sundayafternoon.  By the second week, they got their answer: just about everybody.

On YouTube see the finale for the episode, Beneath the Southern Cross, which described the successful efforts by the American and Brazilian navies to protect convoys in the South Atlantic.  This is the ending narrative:

Û konvoy derbas dibin,

Hilgirtina dewlemendiya Nîvkada Başûr,

Nexwestin yek ji sedî ji bo bacê bidin lê amade ne ku bi mîlyonan ji bo parastinê xerc bikin,

Komarên Amerîkî ji otobanên okyanûsê yên Atlantîka Başûr dijminê xwe yê hevpar derxistin.

Li seranserê deryayê belav dibe

Ji hêla hêza neteweyên ku dikarin mil bi mil şer bikin têne parastin ji ber ku ew fêr bûne ku bi hev re bijîn.

Keştî ber bi armanca xwe diherikin - Serketina Hevalbendan.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ku-uLV7Qups&feature=girêdayî

Pêşverû divê bi stran, helbest, kurteçîrok, fîlm û şanoyan nêrîna aştiyê pêşkêş bikin. Pêşbaziyan bi hin drav xelat û pir naskirinê pêşkêş bikin. Vîzyona min a aştiyê ya bijare ji lêdana 1967, Crystal Blue Persuasion ji hêla Tommy James and the Shondells ve tê:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BXz4gZQSfYQ

Snoppy’s adventures as a fighter pilot and his Sopwith Camel are well known.  Since there are no depictions showing the dead or wounded, people see war as an adventure, a break from everyday humdrum life.  I ask the cartoonists, the television writer and move producers to show the peacenik, the social worker, the homeless person, the teacher, the alternative energy executive, the neighborhood organizer, the priest and the environmental activist.

I have only encountered one peace web site yet that reaches out to those who are currently outside the movement ( http://www.abolishwar.org.uk/ ).  This will mean hiring Madison Avenue firms for recommendations.  After all, they are good at appealing to emotions to make people buy items that they can easily do without. Coming up with appeals will be a challenge for them since this would mean that people will be buying fewer goods from their regular clients.

Peacemakers must offer specifics. Otherwise, war criminals like George W. Bush and Barack Obama will talk about peace until the cows come home. Here are some specifics:

1) budceya leşkerî ya Amerîkî ji sedî 90 kêm bike.

2) baca firotina çekan a navneteweyî,
3) dest bi moratoriumek lêkolîna çekan bikin,
4) dest bi bernameyeke cîhanî ya dijî xizaniyê bikin,
5) leşkerên me ji bo arîkariya karesatê perwerde bikin,
6) Damezrandina kongreya kahîneyê ya Rêveberiya Aştiyê,
7) çekên nukleerî kêm bikin sifir, û,
8) muzakere bikin ku hemî çekên navokî yên cîhanê ji hişyariya porê xwe derxînin.

Bala xwe bidinê ku her pêşnûme dikare bibe stêrkek bumper. Ez pêşverûyan vedixwînim ku jêhatîbûnên ragihandinê yên hêja yên ku hevalên me yên rastgir nîşan dane kopî bikin, yên ku bi sloganên sade baş kirine. Mirov dikare tavilê fêm bike ku rastgir çi dixwazin.

Şaşiyê nekin. Divê mirov şer biqedînin an şer dê me û hemî jiyana li ser gerstêrka me biqede. Ev ne tenê ramanek ji hippies û Quakers e. Binêre vê daxwazê ​​ji General Douglas MacArthur dema ku ew di 19ê Avrêl, 1951 de ji Kongreya Dewletên Yekbûyî re peyivî:

"Ez şer dizanim wekî çend zilamên din ên ku niha dijîn pê dizanin, û tiştek ji min re bêtir serhildan nîne. Min demek dirêj betalkirina wê ya bi tevahî piştgirî kir, ji ber ku wêrankeriya wê hem li ser heval û hem jî dijmin ew wekî navgînek çareserkirina nakokiyên navneteweyî bêkêr kiriye…

Jîngehparêz dibe ku yekem koma mezin be ku rakirina şer qebûl dike her çend, heya nuha, ew li hember lêçûnên leşkerî xemsar bûn. Ez hêvî dikim ku ew ji ber du sedeman şiyar bibin: 1) şerekî navokî dê şaristaniya me piştî nîvroyekê biqede û 2) çavkaniyên ku ji alavên leşkerî re têne veqetandin ji bo her tiştê din ji maseyê qut dibin. Em hemî enerjiya paqijtir û berevajîkirina germahiya gerdûnî dixwazin, lê heya ku artêş bi lez û bez pêşde diçe ev hemî hewildan hindik biser dikevin.

Ji ber ku Lloyd George di sala 1919an de di Konferansa Aştiyê ya Parîsê de destnîşan kir ku aşitî ji çêkirina şer tevlihevtir e, rastkirina vê çewsandinê dê ne hêsan be. Lêbelê, divê bête kirin. Bi wêrekî û dîtinê, mirov dikarin li pey Îşaya bigerin û şûran veguherînin şûran û xwe û hemî jiyana li ser gerstêrka me xilas bikin.

Useful research material:

Kurlansky, Mark (with a forward by His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Nonviolence: Twenty-Five Lessons from the History of a Dangerous Idea.

Regan, Geoffrey. Picking the Past: Reclaiming the Past from Politicians. The Spanish language title is better: Guerras, Politicos y Mentiras: Como nos enganan manipulando el pasado y el presente (Wars, Politicians and Lies: How They Deceive by Manipulating the Past and  the Present).

Ed O'Rourke Hesabê gelemperî ya Medellin, Kolombia dijîn e. Ew niha pirtûkek nivîskî, World Peace, The Roadmap: You Can Get to There from Here.