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Moving out of the "comfort zone"
Ippy D
So, what hasn't been said? And who hasn't yet said something, anything, however repetitive, however
vacuous, however well-meant, about the war in Afghanistan? Suddenly we are all commentators,
suddenly we all decide we oppose war, and suddenly we are all interested in the experience of Afghan
civilians.
But the number of words spewed about the crisis reveals a desperate scramble to find higher ground.
For many, there is a well-rehearsed, reflexive response to conflict, and in particular to US-led - or
sponsored - violence. Both the actions of 11 September, and the inevitable US response to them,
highlight how little the international "peace movement" (a vague term for a vague collective identity)
has moved on since, say, the Gulf War.
That' not to say that we haven't all been busy working away at some worthy tasks, but we need to take
a long, hard look at where all this expended energy has actually taken us.
Diversion ahead!
Is the war on Afghanistan more objectionable than other modern wars? Maybe. There are certainly few
comprehensible reasons for why it is taking place, either politically or militarily. And, worse still, while
everyone is staring, mouths open, watching the drama and crisis unfold, the worldwide purveyors of
war, violence, oppression, torture, corporate greed, and just about every abuse of every kind you could
imagine, are laughing! Look, over there! Opposing all war
This brings us round to the point that, while many of us will undoubtedly expend energy in opposing
this war, particularly those of us who live in Britain and the US, we must all remain unswervingly
focussed on the fact that war is a product. It is the product of a militarist mentality, of a series of
inherently oppressive power relationships, of a desire to maintain or advance a political ideology, to
reinforce the belief that extreme violence can provide political solutions and perhaps, in this specific
instance, to remind us all who's boss.
So, we must continue to speak out and to take practical and effective antimilitarist action, against not
just this, but all war and violence, and to dedicate ourselves to bringing about a massive shift in both
thinking and action, for ourselves and within our communities.
Would we tear up the railway tracks on the route to Auschwitz? Would we cut the ropes of the lynch
mob? Would we obstruct the B52s and sabotage the submarines? Are we prepared to use our personal
power to interfere with the smooth workings of the war machine? Can we move out of the "comfort
zone" and into majority reality?
Making our voices heard
While being critical of how some of our thinking is manifesting itself practically, we do have
something to offer that great swathe of people who do not support war and violence, but are equally
unsure of what the alternatives could be: hope, and the knowledge that the power of one is the power of
the many.
But our concerns, our alternatives, and our strong antimilitarist voices need to be heard above the
simplistic and agenda-related chanting. And we must behave in ways that inspire and empower others
to act to resist militarism. If we fail to do this now, in a time of heightened public awareness and debate
about the nature and meaning of war, then we truly have no claim in representing the future.
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