Tag: antiwar movement

Speaking Truth to Power

There’s a phrase originating with the peace activism of the American Quaker movement: "Speak truth to power." One can hardly speak more directly to power than addressing the presidential administration of the United States. This past October, students at Islamabad’s Islamic International University had a message for Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. One student summed … Continue reading “Speaking Truth to Power”

A Coalition’s Progress: Monterey’s Anti-Afghan War Demonstration

Introduction My local chapter of Libertarians for Peace, co-founded by local libertarian activist Lawrence Samuels and me in 2005, joined the Peace Coalition of Monterey County (PCMC) about three years ago. I think we are the only non-Left group in the 20-plus member coalition. The PCMC includes two religious organizations (Unitarians and Quakers), a labor … Continue reading “A Coalition’s Progress: Monterey’s Anti-Afghan War Demonstration”

Who Will Protest Obama’s War?

Here we are on the verge of a momentous announcement – President Obama’s unveiling of his "comprehensive plan" for escalating the war in Afghanistan – and where is the so-called antiwar movement? Missing in action, as this news report reveals: “‘There’s this trust that he’s going to fix it all,’ said Shara Esbenshade, 19, a … Continue reading “Who Will Protest Obama’s War?”

Myths of Our Time

It is conventional wisdom that it was the draft that ended the Vietnam war.  According to this explanation, cowardly college students subject to the draft and their unpatriotic families, forced an end to the war.  This is Karl Marx’s explanation.  Material interests, not empty morality, are said to have brought the war to an end.  … Continue reading “Myths of Our Time”

An Evening With Cindy Sheehan

"If we thought [the wars in] Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan were wrong when Bush was president, then they’re still wrong." So began Cindy Sheehan in a speech at the Peace Resource Center in Seaside, Calif. (near Monterey). I had never seen Ms. Sheehan speak, and I found her performance impressive. I’ve always respected her for … Continue reading “An Evening With Cindy Sheehan”

Barack Obama to Cindy Sheehan: Get Lost

I spent but a short time with Cindy Sheehan as she carried her antiwar protest from an earlier time at Crawford, TX, to Martha’s Vineyard, vacation spot for Obama and many other Democrat Party elite.   As Cindy remarked, the real story was not that she was protesting Obama’s wars but that the "leadership" of the … Continue reading “Barack Obama to Cindy Sheehan: Get Lost”

Is the Antiwar Movement Waking Up?

Like Rip van Winkle, it seems that the American antiwar movement is – finally – waking up, although, like the original Rip, it doesn’t seem to have changed its idle ways. "A restive antiwar movement," avers the New York Times, "largely dormant since the election of Barack Obama, is preparing a nationwide campaign this fall … Continue reading “Is the Antiwar Movement Waking Up?”