Each month in the newsletter section of our website, we will publish the best peace letter that was published in the KC Star in the previous month. We will award the winners with free membership in PeaceWorks for one year, and they will be invited to our Annual Meeting in March 2003.
Peace Letter for January 2008
Gaza Crisis
Our nation and its leaders cannot and should not remain silent as an illegal humanitarian disaster unfolds in Gaza. Collective punishment is always counterproductive and only serves to block moves toward a just resolution of any conflict.
Because the American government provides Israel with billions of dollars of economic support, I have the right as a taxpayer to demand that those funds not be used to increase human suffering. Israel must abide by international law and universal standards of human rights.
I call on President Bush to demand the immediate end of Israel's blockade. Silence from American officials will only serve to increase the perception worldwide that our nation cares little for the suffering of the Palestinian people.
The perception that the U.S. abets cruel and inhumane treatment of civilian populations provides fodder for the anti-Americanism that may threaten the security of the United States.Zulfiqar Ali Malik
Overland Park
Peace Letter for December 2007
Say no To More War
Despite the official report that Iran halted its efforts for nuclear weapons for years ago, it's likely Bush will continue to push for war in Iran at any cost. That's the clincher here: at any cost.
We've lost nearly 4,000 troops, with thousands more wounded, in a war costing hundreds of millions of dollars a day. The Iraq War has destabilized the region and (according to CIA reports) created thousands of new terrorists. This has been quite the opposite of the :success" touted in the Orwellian "Newspeak" used by the current administration.
Continued war - expanded wars - enrich war profiteers like Halliburton and Blackwater but impoverish all the rest of us.
It's time to look out for the people rather than abdicating our brains and hearts to ideological lies.
No more money for Iraq. No more wars of aggression. We can no longer bear this cost.A.J. Burdick
Kansas City
Peace Letter for November 2007
proceed carefully on Iran
Apparently buying into the Bush strategy of fear-mongering, Otto Rieke echoes the administration's threat to pre-emptively launch a military strike against Iran (10/29, Letters, "Iranian nuclear threat").
He further cites our "spiritual" connection with Israel in equating America's self-interest to the need to initiate another Middle East war.
Isn't it just this kind of macho-jingoistic thinking that got us into the present catastrophe in Iraq?
Why is it that people who profess religious belief as models for government are so quick to abandon religious principles, and advocate resorting to violence and death as a solution to essentially political problems?
Hopefully Mr. Rieke read The Star article of the same date his letter appeared in which the United Nations' Atomic energy Agency's director concluded there was no trace of an active weapons program in Iran (A-2, "Nuclear watchdog discusses U.S.-Iran tension").
Hindsight and a review of recent history would tell us that one WMD myth promoted by this administration should caution us before we launch another pre-emptive war in the name of Judeo-Christian values.
J. Martin Kerr
Independence
Peace Letter for October 2007
Prevent War With Iran
Claire is clear. Our intelligent senator from Missouri, Claire McCaskill, voted against the strange, muddled proposal to declare a part of the Iranian army, the Revolutionary Guard Corps, a terrorist group.
The vote is important because the resolution provides a pretext for the Bush Administration to edge us into war with Iran.
Seymour Hersh writes in the Oct. 8 New Yorker, "Now the emphasis is on 'surgical' strikes on the Revolutionary Guard Corps facilities in Tehran and elsewhere." The recipients of these "surgical" strikes would strike back at us.
Now the same people who led us into the Iraqi quagmire, saying it would be a cakewalk, are advocating a conflict with the larger, stronger, more populous sovereign nation next door.
The American people should be told honestly and forthrightly that the Bush administration wants another war. The Senate should say, "No!"Jean M. Green
Kansas City
Peace Letter for September 2007
Not Spreading Freedom
Our flag stands for freedom, a principle we want to spread throughout the world. And in every Muslim nation, there are many who yearn for freedom - freedom to dress as they please, speak their mind, read what they want and marry whom they wish. Yet as Americans, we have seriously betrayed these Muslims' hopes for freedom.
Inadvertently but predictably, we have strengthened the hands of the most backward, belligerent and oppressive segments of Islam. They have been organized and motivated by resistance to our invasion and occupation of Muslim countries.
While President Bush claims to be spreading freedom, America actually is galvanizing oppressors, even in a democracy like Turkey, where radical factions now are gaining strength and demanding strict Islamic law.
Inadvertently but predictably, our actions have shamed our flag and the most important principle for which it stands - freedom.
Sorry, Old Glory.Fred Slough
Kansas City
Peace Letter for August 2007
Support The Troops
What does supporting our troops really mean? It's more than talking tough, or putting more soldiers in harm's way. It means using our military in defense of our country when we are attacked or have verifiable evidence of a possible attack. War is a horrible way to resolve problems. Perhaps those who are so adamant for war should have to experience it firsthand, either by going themselves or having their loved ones put in harm's way.
I had three brothers serve in the military: one in the Pacific theater for three years in World War II, one in Korea who received the Purple Heart, and one who served in Europe in the Air Force. I never heard any of them talk about the glories of war.
In the Civil War, General Sherman said, "War is hell." Too bad we haven't learned anything in the past 140 years.Denny Gibler
Lee's Summit
Peace Letter for July 2007
each flag a loss of life
The display of more than 3,000 flags at 96th and State Line Road reminds us of the big picture when it comes to the human cost of the Iraq war. It provides a poignant visual image that compels us to think beyond the statistics. While the media give us daily figures on the rising death toll, there is less focus on the personal sense of loss.
When newsworthy events such as the Virginia Tech tragedy occur, coverage of the heartbreaking aftermath is extensive. We are moved by the images of stricken families. We observe friends clutching one another in a desperate attempt to comfort and to be comforted. We view makeshift memorials and look at the sea of tear-stained faces at candlelight vigils.
Surely the same acute sense of loss is played out across our country when Americans die in Iraq. Given the numbers (a tragedy in itself), it would be impractical for the media to relate to each loss personally. We are not allowed to see caskets coming home. The display on State Line Road clarifies the collective loss of life and prompts us to consider the significance of each individual flag.Mary Mikkelson
Kansas City
Peace Letter for June 2007
weapons plant
The National Nuclear Security Administration plans to replace Honeywell's old Kansas City plant with a half-billion-dollar facility.
The new facility is part of Complex 2030, a Bush administration plan to rebuild the Cold War nuclear weapons complex and replace the old stockpile with new weapons.
In protest of this effort, I submit this renunciation of nuclear weapons:
"Mindful of the extreme dangers and costs that nuclear weapons bring to the world and those who rely on them, and mindful of America's practical, moral and spiritual need to serve life rather than build instruments of death, I renounce, withdraw my citizen's consent for and oppose any design, production, testing, planning for use or use of nuclear weapons by the United States against any nation, group, persons or person at any time and under any circumstances."
I make this declaration in my own name and in the name of my mentor, the late Dr. Theo F. Lentz, and all the children of the future.
For additional information on "A Citizen's Renunciation of Nuclear Weapons," see www.nonukes.org .Bill Wickersham
Adjunct professor of Peace Studies
University of Missouri-Columbia
Peace Letter for May 2007
dying for a mistake
The most important decision a president can make is to send his citizens to war. War is not glorious, nor is it an abstract thing like "patriotism" or "sacrifice." War is death and dying. It is hell on earth, and anyone who has ever been in combat knows this. Thus, before governments and leaders send their citizens to war, they must make every effort to get it right.
This administration did not get it right. To date, more than 3,400 Americans and who knows how many Iraqi citizens have died in this conflict, and for what? Half-baked ideas and ideologies that were dead wrong from the outset.
Clearly, Saddam Hussein was not involved in the attacks of 9/11. Clearly, he did not have weapons of mass destruction (including a nuclear arms program).
Clearly, the administration went to war against a nation that did absolutely nothing to us.
Yes, Hussein was a bad man, but so what? There are a lot of bad men in the world.
Our president owes it to our troops, to their families and to the American people to admit that he was wrong.
Please, Mr. President, do not continue to send our loved ones to die for your mistakes.Robert E. Francis
Chaplin (Major), U.S. Army Reserves
Fairfax, MO
Peace Letter for April 2007
press for action on darfur
Time is running out for the people of Darfur. Sunday is "Global Day for Darfur" when concerned people all over the world will pause to take action calling attention to the escalating violence and the failure of the international community to adequately respond to this crisis.
The Jewish Community Relations Bureau/American Jewish Committee urges you to take a few minutes of your Sunday to write to our elected officials, including President Bush, to let them know of your care and concern.
Four years of genocidal violence has left more then 400,000 dead, 2.5 million innocent civilians displaced, and 4 million men, women and children reliant on international aid for survival.
The international community must increase the pressure on Sudan finally to allow the deployment of an international peacekeeping force for the protection of civilians in Darfur.
President Bush should keep his promises to implement and enforce tough unilateral U.S. economic sanctions aimed at Sudan's oil sector.
The U.N. Security Council should move quickly to pass and enforce a resolution aimed at individuals complicit in genocide. Congress and the president must provide adequate funding for peacekeeping and humanitarian efforts in Darfur.
The time for promises is over.Judy Hellman
Associate Director
Jewish Community Relations Bureau/American Jewish Committee
Overland Park
Peace Letter for March 2007
Many are suffering, angry
In response to Allan Abram's As I See It, I would first commend him for his tireless efforts to help resolve the conflict in Israel-Palestine. I have attended presentations by Combatants for Peace, Rabbis for Human rights, as well as other Christian, Jewish and Muslim groups and have heard many voices, loud and clear, calling for an end to the occupation by Israel in Palestinian territory.
Israel has the right to defend itself, but the confiscation of Palestinian land has gone far beyond security. We Americans cherish our homes, our land, and our freedom - but in ways that North Americans cannot imagine, these rights are disappearing for the Palestinian people daily, leaving anger and hopelessness.
Resolve to be better informed and raise your voice so there can be true justice and peace for both people.Evelyn Lobb
Overland Park
Peace Letter for February 2007
poem for a son
Here is a poem I wrote for my son who is deployed to Iraq, serving with the Marines 3rd Recon Battalion as a corpsman (medic).
Unfortunately he has lost several members of his platoon. I think this poem describes how many parents feel about their children serving in the war.
"My Son"
Twenty-four years old
So brave and so bold
Naive maybe, in the ways of war
Soon he would live the reality and horror
A corpsman may be the difference from living or dying
For he would rather perish than give up trying
His marines are his family for now
But he is my son, and I want him home somehow
His heart aches for those he has lost
How could he have known what this war could cost
May God stand with him as he does his part
Hold him, protect him and help mend his heart
I pray for his safety and those he protects
His return is what I want, nothing more, nothing less
He may belong to the Corps as the war rages on
But I want him back, because he is not just a Marine. He is my son.Jay Mathiesen
Parkville, MO
Peace Letter for January 2007
how man more will die?
There is a wall in Washington, a long, black wall of marbled panels inscribed with more than 58,000 names of the long dead. Many of us who did not die have walked that wall, still burdened with loss and guilt. We remember the rain and mud, and the sweat and blood, that sucked at our boots until we thought we were in a quagmire that we might never return from.
Now a much smaller number of names - more than 3,000 so far - are unrecorded and unremembered in spite of their sacrifice and loss. But what if those names were etched each day upon their own panel as they fell? How long must we walk past as each name is etched into stone? How many days, weeks, years?
And now we are called to watch as more names are to be added. Those who return will remember their boots sinking into the sands of Iraq as the hot winds of hate swirl. And for what?
Surely the Iraqis say, "When the Americans leave, then we will sort all of this out." Would we not say and do the same if our country was occupied?
Still, the chiseler etches our brothers' and sisters' names into eternity, one by one, until the war is done.Bill O'Neill
Overland Park
Peace Letter for December 2006
U. S. NUCLEAR PLANS
With so much focus on North Korea's and Iran's nuclear weapons technology, it is disturbing that the U.S. government has announced its development of Complex 2030.
This "bombplex" - a project of the Department of energy's National Nuclear Security Administration - will consist of a new breed of more "useable" nuclear weapons.
This is clearly hypocritical, but more importantly it is a violation of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, which was supposed to embark us on a road to full disarmament of our nuclear arsenal.
Another disturbing fact is that the Kansas City plant at 95th and Troost, which is operated by Honeywell, has a contract with the government to produce 85 percent of all the components that constitute a nuclear weapon (according to 2002 testimony by Honeywell's president before a House Armed Services subcommittee).
The plant is experiencing its heaviest workload in two decades, which is remarkable when one considers that 20 years ago was the height of the Cold War buildup under President Reagan.
This national and local scenario should send red flags that the U.S. government is in the process of coordinating another nuclear arms race for the 21st century. When will this nuclear madness end?Donna Constantineau
Kansas City, KS
Peace Letter for November 2006
Mideast Conflict
Jeff Horen's letter (11/23) criticizing the recent Sabeel Conference in Kansas City at least correctly dated the beginning of this conflict as 1948.
More people need to dig into this historical period to comprehend why many of us believe that there is an illegal occupation, and that this taking of people's land is the root cause of the generations of turmoil in that part of the world.
Recent news stories have underscored the further matter of the illegitimacy of Jewish settlements on land that might really belong to someone else.
We need to display more empathy to families whose homes and livelihood were usurped decades ago with no compensation whatsoever.
I personally would be more than a little bit angry if someone ejected me from my home under the dubious argument that this reflects the teachings of a religious tradition that is alien to my heritage.Dick Phalen
Parkville
Peace Letter for October 2006
nation sets bad example
As a teacher, I am concerned about the level of deadly violence increasingly common in our schools. However, I can't help but wonder why it is all that surprising.
As a nation, we seem to believe that difficult problems with our global neighbors can and should be solved by military intervention. If our national leaders must resort to violent force to get their will instead of peacefully resolving problems, should we honestly expect our children to do any better?
Do the people who advocate that our nation take weapons into any country that opposes us also advise their children to take weapons into school to settle their disputes with their classmates?
We should expect more from both our children and our national leaders.Devin Martin
Kansas City
Peace Letter for September 2006
Terror Threat Overblown
Many thanks for the voice of the New York Times' John Tierney (9/12. Opinion, "U.S. terrorism risks have been exaggerated"), calling attention to Professor John Mueller's book, Overblown, which points out that our politicians and journalists have grossly exaggerated the risks of terrorism.
We need many more voices reminding us that "the odds of an American being killed by international terrorism" are "about the same as those of being killed by a comet or a meteor," and "the number of people killed around the world since Sept. 11 by groups sympathetic to al-Qaida is ... less than the number of Americans who drowned in bathtubs during this period."
Thanks also for the Las Vegas Review Journal editorial on the opposite page that said "the notion that a few thousand religious loonies hiding out in caves can hope to overthrow 'decadent Western culture' is absurd."
Calling the fight against terrorism a "war" is also absurd and gives the terrorists a status they relish but do not deserve. Terrorism is an international crime. To call it a "war" serves only the interests of fear-mongering press and politicians.Ted Otteson
Kansas City
Peace Letter for August 2006
army world?
"C'mon kids, let's go to Army World!" was the headline of an article I came across on CNN's website. Officials at Fort Belvoir, VA were considering allowing a developer to construct a military theme park on the base. Surprisingly, it seemed the only opposition to the park focused on potential traffic problems.
What on earth could be entertaining about war? Isn't it disheartening to know that we have yet to move beyond
the concept of war to resolve conflicts? Do we not yet realize what such violence does to the hearts and minds of all those involved?
Do we really want to desensitize young, impressionable children to the atrocities of war? Wouldn't we rather help to foster in children an earnest desire to eradicate war through innovative, peaceful measures?
War is vulgar. War is archaic. It is surely not the hallmark of a truly intelligent - no, wise - species. If we must continue to war, might we at least try to keep it within the confines of war?Diana Skill
Kansas CityEditor's note: The Army recently rejected this proposal.
Peace Letter for July 2006
disregard for life
For all of the violence sparked by their differences, the Israeli and Hezbollah leaders seem to have more in common than they would like to admit: They share a complete disregard for human life.
Innocent people on both sides of the Lebanese border are dying because of the hatred and shortsightedness of both the Zionists and the jihadists.
U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan is right in calling for an immediate cease-fire and the deployment of a multinational peacekeeping force along the border. History has shown us that if violence in the Middle East is allowed to persist, it can only fester and grow. Neither side can be expected to act with restraint or foresight.
It is shameful how much killing has been done in the name of God and how quickly those ordering the killing, on both sides, forget that this goes against a basic tenet of their religion.Bryce Gray
Leawood
Peace Letter for June 2006
iraq occupation
The administration would have you believe we are still engaged in a war in Iraq. We are not. We are preparing for the long-term occupation of a sovereign country.
The war could have ended when President Bush stood before the banner "Mission Accomplished" or when Saddam Hussein was overthrown or when a new government was democratically elected.
These were all points in time when our military presence could have ended but did not because this administration does not want to leave.
We are building the largest embassy in the world, a mammoth 104-acre campus surrounded by huge walls in the center of Baghdad.
If we left Iraq, we would not be "cutting and running." We would be ending the occupation of an Arab land.
Polls show the vast majority of Iraqis want us to leave. We would be eliminating the most significant reason foreign terrorists come to Iraq to train and fight.
Let's call this what it is: an occupation!Jack Whitaker
Leawood
Peace Letter for May 2006
iran and nuclear weapons
Why can the United States - the only country ever to unleash nuclear WMDs on another nation and most recently famous for unleashing "shock and awe" for no good reason on innocent civilians - be allowed to have warehouses full of nuclear WMDs, while Iran, which someday might need nuclear weapons to protect itself from the trigger-happy United States, is not allowed them?
Under what grounds? What ever happened to the saw, "What's good for the goose is good for the gander?"
Though I believe nuclear armaments are good for neither the goose nor gander, I wonder what makes our government and those other "chicken hawks" in the Senate, the House and the White House so self-righteous to insist on this double standard.
Let's insist on consistency. Nuke the nukes so grandchildren have a happy world thay can inhabit.Roger Goldblatt
Kansas City
Peace Letter for April 2006
dubious war
Presidential hopeful Mark Warner, ex-governor of Virginia, chides President Bush for not challenging Americans to "step up" and "sacrifice" after the attack of 9/11 (4/9. Metro).
Warner's criticism is captious and disingenuous. The Bush "war" on Iraq was planned long before Sept. 11, 2001, and since then has been cynically and deceptively misconstrued as a "war on terror."
Support of this "war" aids and abets the betrayal of our international responsibilities. It endangers our national interests.
Step up and sacrifice to support what? A preemptive, preplanned military strike that has led to a trillion-dollar quagmire and the coming twilight of U.S. world leadership?
Sacrifices of blood and treasure already made by too many families and communities - here at home, but even more in Iraq and elsewhere in the world - have only aided and abetted the high crime of this "war" committed by the current U.S. administration in the name of the American people.Charlton Price
Kansas City
Peace Letter for March 2006
war and peace
Donald Rumsfeld, your headline tells us, is "Taking his cues from Truman" (3/2. A-1). Well, here's a cue from the late president's farewell address, given Jan. 15, 1953, that the defense secretary - and his boss - seem to have ignored. It refers to the worldwide communist threat:
"Now once in a while I get a letter from some impatient person asking: ' Why don't we get it over with? Why don't we issue an ultimatum, make all-out war, drop the atomic bomb? ' For most Americans, the answer is quite simple: We are not made that way. We are a moral people. Peace is our goal, with justice and freedom. We cannot, of our own free will, violate the very principles that we are striving to defend. The whole purpose of what we are doing is to prevent World War III. Starting a war is no way to make peace."
The terrorists didn't start the war in Iraq - George W. Bush and Donald Rumsfeld did. And peace never looked further away.
Dan Nastali
Kansas City
Peace Letter for February 2006
wives detained
For the past weeks as I have begun my day with The Star, I have read of gross political corruption, potential presidential violation of law, allegations of "torture by proxy" (rendition) and endless periods of imprisonment without charge. I shake myself to accept that these are the actions of this country rather than some tyrannical foreign land. I am saddened that many observers view our land, once a beacon of liberty and hope, as the harbinger of world violence and oppression.
Now The Star has carried an article regarding the imprisonment of Iraqi women by U.S. forces (1/28, A-1). I was horrified to learn that some of the women were imprisoned solely because their spouses are suspected insurgents. Years ago I read an article discussing the use of torture in countries worldwide. A range of brutality was recounted, but nothing appalled me more than mistreatment of families.
Such actions are defenseless and cannot be seen in shades of gray. Worse, hatred and retaliation are the predictable response of those victimized by such treatment. By such actions, terrorism is encouraged, not curtailed.
John Swafford
Kansas City
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