Call for waging peace

[anne stadler]

Subject:  A Call for Waging Peace

Recently, American newspaper Letters and Commentaries have been full of
yearning for peace: peace in Iraq for the safe return of our soldiers;
peace as a context for the behavior of conflicting groups who are speaking
out;  peace-- so we can use American power for ends which reflect the ³best²
America can bring to the world.

We know how to wage war.  How do we wage peace?  No civilization yet has
been able to sustain peace. That is the challenge of our time.  Wherever you
look, events are calling us to this historic challenge.

There is experience from which we can draw insight: the evolution of Europe
since World War II is a story of the expansion of multilateral security and
collaboration.  Inside democratic countries, there are systems of democratic
participation for bringing diverse needs into alignment and relationship;
systems of law which protect the individual and manage the power of the
state for the good of the whole. The evolutionary liberation experience of
South Africa, the democratic experience of wildly diverse India contain
lessons. 

What do we need to know? Economists Dietrich Fisher and Jurgen Brauer have
proposed a Research Agenda for Peace Economics. They identify questions such
as these:  Are there feasible international security arrangements?  How can
markets resolve conflicts?  How can economic incentives become an effective
method to deter aggression?  International law experts have their research
agendas and proposals for the evolution of international law.  Some of their
questions include:   How do we police effectively?  In the face of national
resistance, how does the international community act against wrong-doers?
What is the range of non-violent initiatives and measures?  What conditions
optimize the effectiveness of non-violent coercive measures?

There is no dearth of opportunity!  Will and focused attention is all we
lack.  As one of our successful Northwest entrepreneurs says ³ Let¹s Do It!²

Starting right now, today‹we can each ask ³what is my part in waging peace?²
And take the first step.

Yesterday I put my Wage Peace yard sign up, and distributed them to my
neighbors and friends.  Today I am writing and sending this letter.

Peace!  Anne




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