Lord, make us instruments of your peace. Where there is hatred, let us sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is discord, union; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; where there is sadness, joy. Grant that we may not so much seek to be [...]
Archive for June, 2009
A Prayer Attributed to St. Francis of Assisi
Posted: June 28, 2009 in UncategorizedTags: Christianity, peace, prayer, St. Francis of Assisi
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Pro-War Caucus Running the Democratic Party Ditches the Masks
Posted: June 27, 2009 in UncategorizedTags: Afghanistan, civilian casualties, DCCC, Democrats, Obama, Pakistan, war funding
Recent actions by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) and House Democratic leadership reveal that the rationale under which the party solicits funds–electing more Democrats and defeating Republican incumbents–has taken a back seat to a radical, pro-war agenda. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee’s latest ad shows that Democrats now seek to wrap themselves in the [...]
Mechanics of a Slaughter
Posted: June 24, 2009 in UncategorizedTags: Afghanistan, airstrikes, civilian casualties, drones, Pakistan
David Hambling at Wired’s Danger Room blog ventures a guess as to why so many people died in the newest drone-strike embarrasment. According to eye-witnesses, the drones dropped bombs instead of firing missiles, fueling Hambling’s hunch: …the Predator has now been joined by the much larger MQ-9 Reaper, which can carry a heavier payload, around [...]
Drone Attack Kills more than 60 in Pakistan
Posted: June 24, 2009 in UncategorizedTags: Afghanistan, airstrikes, civilian casualties, drones, Paksitan
U.S. drone attacks in support of a pending Pakistani offensive against Taliban leader Baitullah Meshud has likely caused another major civilian casualty event–by using tactics similar to those used by suicide bombers. Democracy Now! reports: At least 60 people have reportedly died in the South Waziristan region of western Pakistan after a US drone attack [...]
For the People of Iran
Posted: June 24, 2009 in UncategorizedTags: Albert Einstein Institution, Iran, nonviolence, nonviolent struggle
Here’s something that might help: a library of material on nonviolent struggle from the Albert Einstein Institution. None of it is in Persian, but there are translations in multiple languages, including Azeri and Arabic, so hopefully someone can speak one of the languages and put it to use. Good luck. P.S. For the regressive shouting-heads [...]
On Becoming What You Hate
Posted: June 23, 2009 in UncategorizedTags: Afghanistan, airstrikes, civilian casualties, drones, Pakistan
Reports are surfacing that U.S. drone operators are firing initial missiles at targets, and then firing secondary missiles at crowds that gather. This is a tactic we’re used to seeing…from suicide bombers. On Thursday, US drones launched an attack on a compound in South Waziristan, and when locals rushed to the scene to rescue survivors, they [...]
Dead Civilians in the Spin Cycle
Posted: June 23, 2009 in UncategorizedTags: Afghanistan, airstrikes, civilian casualties
Gareth Porter penned a great piece for IPS on the place of civilians in military thinking in Afghanistan: U.S. officials at a NATO conference in Brussels last Friday were telling reporters that “public relations” are now considered “crucial” to “turning the tide” in Afghanistan, according to an AFP story on Jun 12…. The new emphasis [...]
Dear Congressman Mike McCaul…
Posted: June 18, 2009 in UncategorizedTags: Afghanistan, Christianity, civilian casualties, Jesus, just war tradition, Mike McCaul, nonviolence, Texas
The following is an email I sent to my U.S. Representative, Mike McCaul, on June 3rd. So far, no response. Congressman McCaul: In your 2009 Memorial Day speech, you said: My God is one of love, not one that condones the killing of innocent people. I am glad to agree with you on this point, [...]
Everybody’s a Sell-Out
Posted: June 17, 2009 in UncategorizedTags: Afghanistan, counterinsurgency, Democrats, Republicans, war funding
Advocates of Counterinsurgency in Afghanistan Sell Out From a post I wrote on DailyKos: From the U.S. Army/Marine Corps Counterinsurgency Field Manual: Long-term success in COIN depends on the people taking responsibility of their own affairs and consenting to the government’s rule. Achieving this condition requires the government to eliminate as man causes of the [...]
Stupid and Unjust: Smart Bombs and Just War
Posted: June 16, 2009 in UncategorizedTags: Afghanistan, airstrikes, Bala Baluk, Christianity, civilian casualties, Col. Greg Julian, Gulf War, Jesus, just war tradition, nonviolence
Remember that airstrike that killed 30-to-140 civilians in Afghanistan? Remember how the U.S. military said they weren’t to blame and they had video to prove it and that they were eager to release it? Here, let me remind you: The footage shows insurgents streaming into homes that were later bombed, said Col. Greg Julian, the [...]
