Some reflections on the subject of war and rumours of war....

‘Tis strange –but true ; for truth is always strange;
Stranger than fiction: if it could be told,
How much would novels gain by the exchange.

Lord Byron, *Don Juan* (1819-24)


In these days of wars and threats of wars we are constantly bombarded with propaganda from the participants on opposite sides in a likely war: the spin doctors of Saddam Hussein on one hand and those of the so-called “coalition of the willing” on the other. As Australia has recently been officially identified as a member of that group by USA’s George W. Bush (contrary to previous protestations by John Howard, Australia’s overbold Prime minister) I, as an Australian among the majority of my fellow citizens, have been keeping my eyes on events as they unfold. I have come to the conclusion that we do NOT want Australia to be involved in any pre-emptive strike against Iraq that does not have the authority of the Security Council of the United Nations behind it. The sheer numbers of protesters taken together with the latest results of opinion polls confirm that as being the attitude of the “common people” of all the nations involved. Yet still the leaders continue to march to the beat of the war drums, shouting their intentions to wage war at any cost!

The NO War movement has become so vocal and its message so clear that the spin doctors of the War At Any Cost hawks have been working overtime to try to turn around the massive opposition to their plans. And you all, no doubt, are familiar with the saying that “In war, TRUTH is always the first casualty. Spin doctors, after all, are paid big money to transform unpalatable truth into believable half-truths or even straight out lies.

Yes, we are living in interesting times; times which tug at emotions mixed with a search for meaning and truth. That search certainly requires every citizen on our planet to constantly reflect on events and their spin-offs and, in the end, act according to their conscience and be faithful to the truth as they perceive it.

I find –as do many others, I’m sure- that multitudes of diverse thoughts and images and questions connected with the prospect of a coming conflagration are in constant flow though my mind and conscience: questions such as : When will someone give us solid evidence of such integrity that war is the only option open to the decision makers? Is not the prospect of the loss of hundreds of thousands of innocent lives an important factor in seeking out peaceful, viable options as opposed to the constant talking up of war’s inevitability? What are the REAL reasons behind the insistence on the war option? Is it REALLY being done in the name of democracy, security, human rights? We are all aware of many other countries which lack democratic political structures and who abuse human rights and/or are as great as, or a greater threat to world security. Why not look at the issues globally and join with all nations in putting sincere and energetic efforts into finding the things in common that can eventually create harmony and peace in a secure and democratic world?

One interesting aspect of the protest movement is the class of people that have come to be known as “human shields” –a phrase originally coined by Saddam Hussein during the first Gulf War. In those days the human shields were Iraqi citizens “co-opted” by Saddam to man posts in the immediate vicinity of strategic parts of Iraq likely to be bombed by the Allied Air Forces. However, many of today’s human shields are volunteers from non-Arab nations.

In a recent session of personal reflection on the reports of unfolding events contributing to the current crisis, I gave some deep thought to the actions of these so-called human shields. Are they, I asked myself, crazy fanatics with death wishes? Or, perhaps, frustrated extroverts seeking their fifteen minutes of fame? Or, maybe they are misguided idealists carrying idealism a step too far? Hard to judge, but I concluded that, whatever their motives, they deserved admiration both for the courage of their convictions and for their physical courage.

Then, a couple of days later I was reminded of my reflections and the questions that they generated. I was listening to a radio program in which one of these human shields talked about his motivations, his feelings and many other aspects of the situation in which he had voluntarily placed himself. The interviewer was a well-known broadcaster with Australia’s Radio National; the interviewee, a young man from New Zealand in his early 30s speaking from a hotel room in the heart of Baghdad.

In the course of listening to that interview I got answers to many of the questions that my sessions of reflection had raised. He was giving this interview just before setting out on a journey to other parts of Iraq to examine some of the sites that he and others would try to shield from military action. He frankly admitted to being apprehensive, but stated firmly and convincingly that he was prepared to die should the invaders decide to attack, knowing that he and others were in the line of fire.

He also spoke about his family, how close they were and how much he loved his parents. He stated that they did not agree with his actions, but supported his right to live up to his ideals, even if that meant dying for them. He said that he did NOT admire Saddam Hussein; that his concern was for the innocent men, women and children who would die in the event of an invasion.

“Yes”, he said, “ I am nervous about what might happen to me, but I must stick to my principles!” And what did he state were his principles? He stated that his journey in life was the pursuit of TRUTH, JUSTICE and PEACE.

That statement really got to me and -paraphrasing some lines from Coleridge’s Rime of the Ancient Mariner- “a spring of love gushed from my heart and I blessed him unawares.” What a mantra! I thought. The pursuit of Truth, Justice and Peace! What worthy, noble aims! But, are they achievable? Maybe not in the world as we know it. But, who knows?

Perhaps with the help of people such as the brave Kiwi in Baghdad, and the millions who have marched and are marching against war, we humans might achieve these three aims sooner than later and then all mankind will be the benefactors.



©2003 Patrick Talty