Peace in the New Year

I put my feeling about illuminaria (below) here, but the most important thing to say is, it's not really Quakerly, nor is it related to Cloud Quakers in any way. It's just me, in my house, saying I'm here, bring in the light, bring in the blessings of the new year. The world seems overwhelming these days. Israel is militant about killing as many Palestinians as possible, and Palestinians, even in the West Bank, are more supportive of Hamas than ever. And do you think the Russians and Ukrainians will ever just lay down their guns? I doubt it.

I try to envision what militant peacemaking might look like in today's world, when I feel more like a "slactivist," one who professes peace yet mostly just sits here in my chair. Yes I am NOT taking up guns, NOT shooting my neighbor, even feeding the hungry and doing my part to alleviate some of the divisions and strife in today's small town Illinois. But what is one supposed to do about Russia or Israel? I have no idea. To some, the answer is "don't vote for Biden." But to me, that's beginning to sound like "let Trump give all the guns to Russia instead of Ukraine."

One side of it says, pure force is the only answer. Israel must bulldoze Gaza until they wipe out the tunnels; Russia will use its superior force to get what it wants eventually unless we are in there with our superior force; China's invasion of Taiwan is almost a certainty. Where is the UN in all this? The UN is an illusion. Putting our hopes or our force into the UN seems to be somewhat pointless.

Calling on the US to have a less power-based foreign policy seems to have some hope, but I think someone should be able to spell out exactly what this would look like. The AFSC is there for that purpose, and still funded to some degree by American Quakers, but I'm not sure exactly what they've been doing, much less have any clue what I would have them do if I were working for them. They I think became somewhat pro-Palestinian over the years, but these days anyone who criticises Israel's bulldoze-and-kill-the-children war is considered "antisemitic." The evangelist-Trump alliance is probably Israel's best friend, as there's no question that most of the money used in the brutal bombing and starving of Palestinians has come from us and backed by a pro-Israel bloc that is easily a majority. Is the killing of a million or so Palestinians different from the starving and gassing of millions of Jews in World War II? Well, yes, in some ways. But it's still killing, and I'm opposed to it. Succesful militant peacemaking at this point could save millions of lives. But Egypt's plan doesn't seem to be doing it for either side.

In my chair, I'm opposed to all these wars. I have no idea what to do about it, so call me a slactivist. And this is my own opinion by the way, call me antisemitic if you want, but I'm just Tom Leverett, wishing you a Happy New Year here from Galesburg Illinois, and hoping for peace in the new year. Your comments are welcome.