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(Article originally published here on December 20, 2010)
Time's Up! We have to act to stop the politicians from provoking war with Russia and China. This is not a drill. We must bring them to their senses before it is too late. Dr. King was right:
There is such a thing as being too late. Over the bleached bones and jumbled residue of numerous civilizations are written the pathetic words: 'Too late.' We must move past indecision to action.
Cesar Chavez recalled that when he planned a direct action, he often heard, "But there are not enough of us." "Wrong," he would say: "There ARE enough of us, but nothing is going to happen without action!" Poet Annie Dillard put it this way: "There is only us; there never has been any other."
At the White House Fence
The following article goes back a dozen years. The urgency of today requires this kind of action -- and more.
"Show me your company, and I'll tell you who you are," my grandmother would often say with a light Irish lilt but unmistakable seriousness, an admonition about taking care in choosing what company you keep.
On Thursday, I could sense her smiling down through the snow as I stood pinned to the White House fence with Daniel Ellsberg, Chris Hedges, Margaret Flowers, Medea Benjamin, Coleen Rowley, Mike Ferner, Jodie Evans, and over 125 others risking arrest in an attempt to highlight the horrors of war.
The witness was sponsored by Veterans for Peace, a group comprised of many former soldiers who have "been there, done that" regarding war, distinguishing them from President Barack Obama who, like his predecessor, hasn't a clue what war is really about. (Sorry, Mr. President, donning a bomber jacket and making empty promises to the troops in the middle of an Afghan night does not qualify.)
The simple but significant gift of presence was being offered outside the White House. As I hung on the fence, I recalled what I knew of the results of war.
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