[alicebot-aiethics] The Peace Platform

[Robby Garner]

Rich,

Your points are good, but I'd like to point out that even if none of the
united states *wanted* to be the police of the world, we are somewhat
thrust into this situation since much of the world's economy is based on
our economy , our well-being, and therefore our national interests are
global. As you pointed out, this is a world problem, not a NYC problem,
or a USA problem, it is a world crisis.

Let's pray that this terrible tragedy serves to unite more people than
it divides.  Sadly, it takes an act of this magnitude to make people
stop what they are doing long enough to consider what is going on in the
world around us. 

For those who want to whine about their personal hardship of losing
"personal freedoms,"  look to history and see how we acheived these
freedoms.  Only by studying history can we avoid making the same
mistakes over and over again.  Freedom has a price, and I personally am
willing to pay whatever it takes. I fully support our president and the
leadership of the world, and pray for them to work this out in the most
peaceful way possible.  All politics fade to black, and it is a time to
let our people, and the people of the world unite and shine out in
truth, not hatred, not misplaced revenge, not more tragedy.

The magnitude of this is painfully obvious, seeing NATO invoke article
5, is an act reserved for threats of war, showing the soidarity of the
member nations, sworn to protect one another. And in times of illness
one often finds more friends than one realized one had.

Let us recognize the acts of *support* of all nations, in a world where
the USA is often viewed as the agressor, let us have the wisdom not to
lash out blindly, and let the USA demonstrate that this can be our
finest moment, not our darkest.  If this serves to bring us closer to
other natiions like Russia and China, then a good will have come from
this.  World War two is not ancient history, and we can be thankful to
have the allies from that war, stongly, and solidly behind us, their
support unconditional, though there are individuals and detractors in
all nations who will want something else.

Let us reach a greater understanding of the world's religions, and their
view of us as a threat to their way of life. Why is that? And how can we
solve this in a peaceful, productive way?

Let God protect us from punishing those on our own soil, who are
innocent.  There are many fine Americans who are Islamic or of Muslem
descent.  They did not perpetrate this attrocity, and should not be
punished for it.

Rich refers to the targets of these horrible acts as being "outdated"
but that is very naive. Study history, and you will understand that
world war two is not irrellevant. The inescapable sequence of events
that led to world war one is not irrellevant.  All of history serves as
potential lessons to be learned, not only about our place in the world,
but about the dynamics of all actions made by the people of earth.

Those symbols may be old ones, but humanity is much older, yet still has
many of the same problems, only in new configurations, new faces, new
citizens. But do not forget the past - it is our only set of clues, no
new logic will solve this without realizing the consequences of our past
actions.

May the lord unite us and illuminate us with understanding and love of
life itself.

Sincerely,

Robby.




Richard Wallace wrote:
> 
> Quickly realizing that I am in a small minority in my own country, I thought
> it would be appropriate for me to articulate my feelings about the war and
> peace.  I have a long history of opposing American military involvement
> overseas, beginning with the Vietnam War, which ended when I was 15.  I was
> one of the few opposed to the Persian Gulf War, believing that sanction were
> not given enough time to work.  As a long time member of the Libertarian
> party, I have always favored a reduction of the U.S. military.  These ideas
> are not all new in response to the current crisis, but a summary of long
> held personal beliefs and values.
> 
> Today in our Writer's Group at the Chapel we began to prepare a statement
> for Peace, but we were interrupted by a member who wanted to Bomb Them Back
> to the Stone Age and be the Policeman of the World.  The mood changed and we
> couldn't finish the statement, so I decided to take another crack tonight:
> 
> 1. Let's not concentrate office workers in gigantic towers, but spread them
> around many smaller facilities throughout cities and suburbs.
> 2. Let's not rely on jet travel so much.  America made some bad choices in
> the past, when we sacrificed the railroads to build interstate highways and
> support jet travel.  Rebuild the railroads and diversify our transportation
> options.
> 3. Stop driving so much.  Telecommute more, and decrease our reliance on
> automotive transportation, and in turn oil.
> 4. Alternative energy sources like Wind and Solar need to be developed much
> more.  Continued reliance on oil only increases the chance of conflict.
> 5. Decrease U.S. military involvement overseas.  Let other nations settle
> their own conflicts without us.  We don't have to be Policeman of the World.
> 6. The Wired World will help us decrease our reliance on fuel and
> transportation, and allow us to spread out and decentralize organizations.
> The recent burst of the Internet bubble does not invalidate the long-term
> potential for services such as home shopping.  Investing in network and
> computer technology will liberate us from the hydrocarbon economy.
> 7. The Pentagon and the World Trade Center are powerful symbols of America.
> But they are also symbols from a time gone by.  The Pentagon was built
> during World War II and oversaw the Cold War.  But it is a symbol of an
> industrial age, an age of mechanized war between states.  We should
> decentralize the military as much as possible to remove such high-profile
> targets.  The World Trade Center too is a symbol of an age when Bigger was
> Better.  The challenge to build the highest building in the world is an
> archetype of the age of extremes.  It was an age before environmental impact
> studies, historical preservation, or archaeological studies of building
> sites in lower Manhattan.  As evil as the destruction of these symbols was,
> we should ask whether the existence of such symbols is worth the price.
> 8. No outcome could be worse than the loss of civil liberties and human
> rights that have been built up over generations.  We cannot sacrifice any of
> our civil rights in the name of tracking down and punishing terrorists.
> 9. Afghanistan is one likely target of military action.  It should be
> remembered that Afghanistan has never been conquered, although the British
> and Russian both tried for centuries.  Afghanistan destroyed the Soviet
> Union.  The terrain is mountainous and the people are accustomed to fighting
> foreigners on their own soil.  The last place in the world where America
> should be involved militarily is Afghanistan.
> 10. Pray for peace.  Whether you stand for war or peace, please say a prayer
> for a peaceful outcome as soon as possible, with the smallest loss of life.
> Even if you disagree with every point above, you can't disagree that the
> pain and suffering ahead should be as limited as possible.  If enough people
> pray for peace, it can be achieved.
> 
> Thanks for listening.
> Rich
> 
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