Paris, ISIS, 9/11…

This is an appeal to the world for common sense:
A clash of values can lead
to the death of our civilization;
We need to listen, compromise and love
so that we can learn to live in peace.

How can we make sense of
the vicious terrorist attacks in Paris?
132 people killed and many severely injured on November 13th.
What senseless slaughter! Bloody murder! Uncivilized!

Earlier, terrorists destroyed a Russian plane with 224 on board,
and badly damaged a Hezbollah center in Lebanon with 44 dead.
All are our brothers and sisters. We mourn their loss.


Peace symbols adapted for the Paris bombings and Russian plane crash.

Son-in-law John just returned from Paris
having escaped the madness in the cafe and the concert hall.
He found the Parisians resilient —
determined to overcome fear and
together rebuild the city.

President Hollande called for revenge with blood,
urged the country ‘to go to war’ against
a bunch of criminals called ISIS.

Have we not learned anything from the past?

Recall that George W. Bush, Jr. tried something similar
after 9/11 resulting in a total defeat in Iraq.
His team killed and maimed millions as they
slavishly followed a flawed policy of the endless war,
echoes of empire and imperialism —
a black eye for the Americans.

Recall the lessons of World Wars I and II,
the Vietnam quagmire, the Korean War,
and countless wars before.
Wars exist for profit, for oil, for money, for religion, for territory —
a shameful barbaric behaviour for humanity.

Have bombings, sanctioned killings
helped society to become better?
Have extremist violent acts added value to society?

We seem to be good at destroying
but bad at rebuilding peace with
full free medical services,
basic infrastructure,
homes, food, free education,
enhanced culture and respect for life itself
including the health of our environment.

What have we really learned
from the wisdom of the ages,
from our mentors —

Tolstoy: ‘War is a slavery of our times.’
Killing people is murder and therefore war is contrary
to religion and morality.

Gandhi: ‘An eye for an eye will leave everyone blind.’

Smedley Butler: ‘War is a racket’ in which soldiers
are called to protect the wealth of the rich.
‘War is a racket … It is the only one in which the profits
are reckoned in dollars and the losses in lives….
Out of war a few people make huge fortunes.’

Martin Luther King, Jr: ‘Darkness cannot drive out darkness;
only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate;
only love can do that.’

Tolstoy (Nov. 26): ‘Just as one candle lights another
and can light thousands of other candles,
so one heart illuminates another heart
and can illuminate thousands of other hearts.’

The Golden Rule: ‘Do to others
what you would want them to do to you.’
Also: ‘Thou shalt not kill.’
Most people support this.

Why should children be taught one thing in school
while the adults bully the people to go to war
to kill
and contribute to a crime against humanity?

The Law of Love: Let’s adopt it.
Bring our troops home.
Convert swords into plowshares and
create Departments of Peace in our parliaments.

Just image —
How fresh our Planet Earth could be
when we act
‘AS IF’ we are civilized again —
creating a future
that gives hope
to us,
to our children,
to our grandchildren, and
to all peoples of the world.

Another Mother For Peace logo

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Comment with image, from

Ivaylo Grouev, Ottawa, Ontario. November 20, 2015

Very good Koozma, a great text. Here is something within these lines.

'Zionism explained', Forwards from Klandma, reddit.com, 2018.