The Abolition of War
The famous words: “They shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks, nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war no more” are attributed to Isaiah in 700 B.C. Abolition of war. An age-old dream? Idealistic? Yes. But as the planet moves closer to destruction we must abolish war. War and the threat of war. It’s an old story. Populations are subjected to propaganda. Fear is manufactured. We deploy our troops to fight around the world. At the beginning of the Cold War, Senator Arthur Vandenberg told President Harry Truman that if wanted a militarized U.S. foreign policy he’d better “scare the hell out of American people.” That’s been Washington’s playbook ever since. Everywhere we look there are threats or potential threats. Let’s get rid of war before it gets rid of us.
Speaker
David Swanson
David Swanson is an activist, journalist, and radio host. He is director WorldBeyondWar.org and author of War Is Never Just and Curing Exceptionalism. He has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.
sergioatallah –
Besides the moral and economic disaster that war brings, the failure of war represents an embarrassment to those who wage it. With a few more David Swansons we change the world.
Hank in Taos, NM –
Just heard David Swanson on KCEI here in Taos. Staggering stuff. stunning. As always, thank you for your fine, fine work.