I'm hoping you can join me on an emergency petition from citizens around the world to the U.N. Security Council. The petition's going to be delivered to the 15 member states of the Security Council on MONDAY, MARCH 10.

If hundreds of thousands of us sign, it could be an enormously important and powerful message -- people from all over the world joining in a single call for a peaceful solution. But we really need everyone who agrees to sign up today. You can do so easily and quickly at: http://www.moveon.org/emergency/

The stakes couldn't really be much higher. A war with Iraq could kill tens of thousands of Iraqi civilians and inflame the Middle East. According to current plans, it would require an American occupation of the country for years to come. And it could escalate in ways that are horrifying to imagine.

We can stop this tragedy from unfolding. But we need to speak together, and we need to do so now. Let's show the Security Council what world citizens think.
1:24:21 PM    Comments?()  

Wow, this letter just about has me crying. Certainly I'm crying inwardly. Everything he says is more than true, and it kills me to see how much ground is lost over such a short time. I actually harbor thoughts of moving to Vancouver Canada, where the weather is temperate and Bush has much less to do with people's lives. I'm ashamed to be considered part of what he's doing - except that I feel as if I can do a little something from my vantage point in the belly of the beast. With all my efforts (joining with international peace groups' efforts via internet) I can at least let the rest of the world know that we aren't all blindly following down the path towards fascism with a flag in our hands and a smile on our face.

My hope is continually shored up by the voices and actions of people such as this diplomat, those internet activist groups whose actions are saving us from various destructive pieces of legislature, the few politicians who dare to speak against the administration, and the growing number of grassroots peace-focused groups around the country. When Bush first took office, I wondered if maybe Ralph Nader was right. Nader was sure that we were destroying ourselves through complacency, and that it would take something drastic to get everyone galvanized into a joint uprising, to insist on what's right and just. I do actually see that happening. It's what keeps me from despair. There are zillions of groups forming, in the same way that new neural networks will form when an injury has stopped proper nerve fuctioning in an area. Small groups are reaching out and joining with other small groups, and thanks to e-mail and internet connections, they are now creating synchronized peace and justice actions. It really does look to me like a new neural system being created around the earth. When we're threatened, as we are every hour by some new atrocity this administration thinks up, all these small local groups swing into action and start pumping out white blood cells!

The last International Peace Meditation that I participated in last week (a huge worldwide effort) included a group of scientific types of people who knew the effects on society of combined focus; plus a group of more new-age peace types who believe in creating a new reality through joint focus on a vision; plus a christian group who believes in the power of group prayer; and a Japanese social activism group. I've never seen such disparate groups joining in one event before. It's a sign of good things to come, in my view. This kind of connectivity wasn't possible when Hitler was rising to power. I really see all kinds of hope in what's happening these days.

Bonnie
10:19:18 AM    Comments?()