Tag: anti-war

Global Resources and Challenges for 2016 ©

Posted on by kathiemm

guest author: Anthony J. Marsella, Ph.D.

The new calendar year is upon us . . . in every sense of the word!  We use the New Year as an opportunity for renewal — a chance for a fresh start. We leave behind the accumulate residue of the past year, and respond now with a blank slate of possibilities — an imagined vision of what could be . . . “If only.”  Yes, it is the “If only,” constraining us and inspiring us.  I once wrote a wisdom bite:  “If!  A two-letter word, simple in sound, profound in consequence.”

So here we are!  Wanting a new start, but clear we have much unfinished business from last year.  There is wisdom in knowing the challenges we face, for life is never free of them. It is also useful to know the resources we possess, even if they may be inadequate to the task. It is useful to explore the dynamics of resource-challenge relations.  There will always be tradeoffs and compromises, and these are disappointing. Yet, they constitute a reality that cannot be ignored.  So what does 2016 look like from the resource-challenge perspective?

ResoursesAnInterdependentConfluenceOfEvents

In my opinion, there are reasons for fear, and reasons for hope.  Has it ever been anything different? Hasn’t history shown us each age was filled with its challenges and resources? Yes, this is true.  But what is different this year – 2016 – is the “global stage” in which the challenges and resources are being tested and contested. We are unprepared for the magnitude of stage.  And, the problem is resources are always fewer in number than challenges. But is their power less?

There is something noble and inspirational about the willingness to assert human and environmental dignity and worth via various resources.  There is something noble about joining causes to bring positive changes.  This may be the most important thing! It is hard to speak of the nobility of the human spirit when we consider the widespread abuses and insults human have engendered.  But perhaps the “process” of responding to challenges reminds us of the essence of life itself – a felt force seeking and pursuing, not only survival, but growth, development, and becoming.  Go for it!

Anthony J. Marsella, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, Hawaii 96822.

Show, by your actions, that you choose peace over war, freedom over oppression, voice over silence, service over self-interest, respect over advantage, courage over fear, cooperation over competition, action over passivity, diversity over uniformity, and justice over all.

Time to protest?

Posted on by kathiemm


In 1965, the Vietnam Day Committee, an anti-war group in Berkeley, California, called for an International Day of Protest from October 15-16 to express revulsion against the Vietnam War.

Protest demonstrations around the country gradually evolved into a powerful anti-war movement that included servicemen rebelling against involvement in a war that they increasingly saw as immoral and unjust.

In 2011, we see an expanding series of protests against the powerful international banking and financial interests that are increasingly recognized as being at the roots of war, injustice, inequality, and the destruction of the planet. For a dramatic overview of the protests ignited by the economic crisis that has resulted in the largest profits ever accruing to the biggest financial institutions in one year, watch the video above.

In the US, there have been growing protests against the Iraq and Afghanistan wars (see, for example), growing protests against Wall Street, and a coming together of the anti-war, anti-Wall Street/pro-peace, pro-democracy groups (see, for example).

These protests are not being conducted by violent fringe groups; they are students, teachers, social workers, nurses, doctors, artists, musicians, community organizers, environmental groups, lay people, professionals—providing a broad representation of the 99% who are not benefiting from the wars and from the control of the government by banking and business institutions.

Their agenda is non-violent. Violence has come from the police and others in authority who are ready to quell protest, however legitimate the concerns of the protestors.  The way to keep violence out of protests is not to prevent protests but to bar the police from using violence.

The First Amendment to our Constitution prohibits, among other things,  interfering with the right of citizens to assemble peacefully and to petition the government for redress of grievances.  If Americans value their democracy, and respect their Constitution, it is important for them to support those rights, and to insure that members of the police/military establishment do not infringe on those rights.

Kathie Malley-Morrison, Professor of Psychology

Nobel Peace Laureates and International Women’s Day

Posted on by kathiemm

In honor of International Women’s Day, celebrated March 8 of this year, we dedicate this post to the five most recent female winners of the Nobel Peace Prize.International Women's Day logo

2004: Wangari Maathai from Kenya, the first African woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize, received the award for her achievements in sustainable development, the rights of women, democracy, environmental protections, and peace. (For more on Wangari Maathai, see this video.)

2003: Shirin Ebadi from Iran was awarded the Peace Prize for her work on behalf of democracy and human rights, particularly the rights of women and children. She was the first woman in Iran to become a federal judge, a position taken from her following the Islamic Revolution of 1975. Not until 1992 was she again allowed to practice law in her home country. Much of her work is risky, focusing on human rights cases. (For more on Shirin Ebadi, see this video.)

1997:  The 1997 Peace Prize was shared by Jody Williams of Putney, Vermont, USA, and the organization she co-founded, the International Campaign to Ban Landmines. She has devoted her life to anti-war, anti-violence activities, and has helped to found the Nobel Women’s Initiative which works for peace with equality and justice.  (For more on Jody Williams, see this article and video.)

1992: Rigoberta Menchú Tum from Guatemala grew up in an impoverished Mayan Indian family that founded the Committee for the Peasant Union, which fought for social reform and justice for native families. Following the torture and murder of her father and brother, she fled the country and dedicated her life to promoting human rights and reconciliation. (For more on Rigoberts Menchu Tum, see this video.)

1991: Aung San Suu Kyi, born in Burma (now Myanmar), has earned international recognition for her work on human rights. Despite being held under house arrest in Burma for most of the past few decades, she has been continuously outspoken on behalf of the Burmese people.  (For more on Aung San Suu Kyi, see this video.)

These five women are all human beings who have devoted their lives to promoting human rights and peace. Read or listen to their stories. What characteristics do you share with them? What can you do to promote peace and human rights? Everyone can do something–you don’t have to be a Nobel Laureate to make a difference for peace.

Kathie Malley-Morrison, Professor of Psychology