The great majority warmly embraced us, some literally, helping to write "Stop the War" in Arabic, Spanish, and French for our signs, or dropping donations in our bucket. People stared a long time at a photo of Afghan civilians wounded by a U.S. bomb, and asked, "Is that war still going on?" "Why hasn't it been stopped, because we're all against it?" "I think the people there must hate us."
A couple of Wall Street occupiers took issue, not with ending the war, but with making it a main focus. One said that he is mainly worried about people in this country, whom he called "Americans." A friend of his accurately reminded him that this whole hemisphere is filled with Americans, but only in one country does the use of that term refer exclusively to citizens of the United States.
I read them one of my favorite one-liners from BAsics, the speeches and writings of Bob Avakian.
"American lives are not more important than other peoples' lives."
I said why it's such an outrage that the richest country in history is destroying one of the poorest. With more than 1,100 U.S. bases in countries around the world, U.S. power amounts to a world-wide empire, and the U.S. has a larger military budget than all other countries combined. Think about the destruction of the global environment caused by this military machine, the largest user of fossil fuels in the world, again, more than most countries.
They were kind of with me on that point. "Think what could be done with all that money at home," said the kid with peace sign tattoos. " I can see why you think it's important to end the war. The U.S. really can't afford the billions of dollars for war."
But, in reality, the people who run this country can't afford not to maintain an empire. It's how they dominate strategic parts of the world, especially the oil-rich Middle East, and keep other countries from controlling them. War and the projection of military power is how they control globalized markets and production, which they would lose without the guns to back up their exploitation of people and resources.
Our opposition to U.S. wars of occupation is fundamentally based on morality. They're not fought in our interest, and certainly not in the interests of the people of the world.
Stopping the wars is so fundamental because they protect a system which hourly promotes a bigger gap between rich and poor, exploiters and exploited, on a world-wide basis.
Come out, protest, occupy, raise your voices against the 10 years of war in Afghanistan and against US domination of the globe. That's where the horrors start, and where we must put a stop to them.
Write me at debrasweet at worldcantwait.net for information on a conference call Thursday Sept. 29. 10pm Eastern/7pm Pacific discussing Why is the U.S. in Afghanistan and Iraq? What is the effect on those societies? When, if ever, will the U.S. leave? Presenters Larry Everest, author of Oil, Power & Empire: Iraq and the U.S. Global Agenda, and Raed Jarrar, who blogs at RaedintheMiddle, and was born in Baghdad, will take your questions.
UPDATE: You can listen to the recorded conference call here.
1
1
1
