The justification for war and a lesson in critical thinking

It is always important to keep an open mind and explore new ideas. In a world full of nuclear weapons, perhaps it is time to tryout a nonintervention approach when dealing with foreign policy.

Here is a great speech by Howard Zinn, which questions the wisdom of going to war:

Critical thinking is essential for a society to move forward, and it is desperately needed in a time when a country is collapsing in upon itself.

“when it comes to war the means are horrible and the ends are uncertain” – Howard Zinn

Howard Zinn (August 24, 1922 – January 27, 2010) was an American academic historian, author, playwright, and social activist. Before and during his tenure as a political science professor at Boston University from 1964-88 he wrote more than 20 books, which included his best-selling and influential A People’s History of the United States.[2] He wrote extensively about the civil rights and anti-war movements, as well as of the labor history of the United States. His memoir, You Can’t Be Neutral on a Moving Train, was also the title of a 2004 documentary about Zinn’s life and work.

Eager to fight fascism, Zinn joined the Army Air Force during World War II and was assigned as a bombardier in the 490th Bombardment Group,[6] bombing targets in Berlin, Czechoslovakia, and Hungary.[7] A U.S. bombardier in April 1945, Zinn dropped napalm bombs on Royan, a seaside resort in southwestern France.[8] The anti-war stance Zinn developed later was informed, in part, by his experiences.

I don’t agree with Howard on everything, indeed some of his ideas are socialist in nature, but I do like his critical thinking.

Critical thinking is important, especially when the subject of war comes up. Wars are almost always based on lies, and the outcomes are not always as desired.

Critical thinking means looking for more information to fill in the gaps, instead of just seeing everything as black and white.

This picture presents a false dichotomy, because the ‘only other option’ currently being presented is Mitt Romney, who I have explained before is the same as Obama on almost every level.

Certainly it would be a move forward if he is replaced with a constitutional minded president, but not if he is replaced with someone like mitt Romney who is essentially the same in his beliefs.

Sites such as www.arewesafer.com represent a real problem in this country. This site presents another false dichotomy. Why do we want to feel ‘safer’ when safer really means less free. Should we bomb another country to make ourselves feel better about ourselves? Are they actually a threat to begin with?Or are they just being attacked so that a select few can make more money through the sale of oil, weapons and bloodshed?

I have seen many friends and family get caught up in the fascist mantra of blind nationalism in their fight against Obama and socialism. While I despise socialism, I know that neither collectivist concept will do us any good, and so I find myself in battles on both sides to get them to see reason.

We live in a world that is waking up to new ideas, and is slowly discovering that capitalism does work, but that it is still held back by corruption.

Always keep an open mind to something new, and check your premise. You might be pleasantly surprised with what you find out.

Critical thinking paves the way for the future because it is unbiased, and deals with the facts, and not just propaganda. Always do you own research and use your mind.

 

With critical thinking at the helm of governments instead of looters, perhaps we can avoid mindless wars altogether.

Julian Assange speaks out

Julian Assange is something of an enigma. To be honest, I don’t know a lot about him. I still don’t pay much attention to the mainstream news, and I don’t like conspiracy theories. So I mildly pay attention and try to figure out the real story from a distance. Today Julian spoke out from the Ecuadorian Embassy in London. I found much of what he said to be intriguing and inspiring.

LONDON (Reuters) – WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange used the balcony of the Ecuadorean embassy on Sunday to berate the United States for threatening freedom of expression and called on President Barack Obama to end what he called a witch-hunt against his whistle-blowing website.

Speaking from within the London mission to avoid arrest by British police who want to extradite him to Sweden for questioning over rape allegations, Assange said the United States was fighting a war against outlets like WikiLeaks.

Pitching himself alongside Russian punk band Pussy Riot and the New York Times newspaper, Assange said the United States risked shunting the world into an era of journalistic oppression. He did not address the rape allegations.

“As WikiLeaks stands under threat, so does the freedom of expression and the health of all of our societies,” Assange said, dressed in a maroon tie and blue shirt, flanked by the yellow, blue and red Ecuadorean flag.

“I ask President Obama to do the right thing: the United States much renounce its witch-hunt against WikiLeaks,” Assange said in a 10-minute speech which he ended with two thumbs up to the world’s media.

Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa, a self-declared enemy of “corrupt” media and U.S. “imperialism”, granted the former computer hacker political asylum last week, deepening a diplomatic standoff with Britain and Sweden.

Asylum in Ecuador marked the latest twist in a tumultuous journey for Assange since he incensed the United States and its allies by using his WikiLeaks website to leak hundreds of thousands of secret U.S. diplomatic and military cables in 2010, disclosures that often embarrassed Washington.

Assange, 41, took sanctuary in the embassy in June, jumping bail after exhausting appeals in British courts against extradition to Sweden, where he is wanted in Sweden for questioning regarding allegations of rape and sexual assault against two women.

He says he fears Sweden will eventually hand him over to the United States where, in his view, he would face persecution and long-term imprisonment. The United States says it is not involved in the matter.

‘FIGHTING SPIRIT’

To allow Assange to avoid arrest by stepping outside the embassy, a balcony door on an upper floor was removed, leading up to his first public appearance since seeking refuge in the diplomatic mission two months ago.

Speaking behind the condor of the Ecuadorean coat of arms on the white balcony railing of the embassy, Assange thanked Correa and Ecuador’s diplomats, whom he praised for standing up against oppression.

“The sun came up on a different world and a courageous Latin American nation took a stand for justice,” Assange, with cropped hair indicating a recent cut, said from the balcony.

Assange’s attempt to escape extradition has touched off a diplomatic tussle between Britain and Ecuador, which accused London of threatening to raid its embassy and casting the dispute as an arrogant European power treating a Latin American nation like a colony.

Assange, who praised a dozen Latin American countries which he said had rallied against Britain in the dispute, said the United States was at a turning point which could drag the rest of the world into a new oppressive era.

He said U.S. army intelligence analyst Bradley Manning, accused of the largest leak of classified documents in U.S. history to WikiLeaks, was a hero who should be released by the United States.

Manning faces life in prison if convicted.

“If Bradley Manning did as he is accused, he is a hero and an example to all of us and one of the world’s foremost political prisoners,” said Assange. “Bradley Manning must be released.”

‘FIGHTING SPIRIT’

More than 50 of Assange supporters, many of whom have slept on sheets of cardboard outside the building since Wednesday, decorated barriers with messages of support for Assange and placards reading “asylum – end the witch hunt”.

“They are not treating him fairly,” said Chantal, 28, a French pro-WikiLeaks blogger who had traveled overnight with a friend from near Paris in the hope of seeing Assange speak.

“Great Britain has shown it doesn’t respect human rights – political asylum is a right which should be respected by all countries,” she said. She refused to give her surname.

There was also a large crowd of curious passersby and bemused shoppers with bags from the nearby ritzy Harrods store watching the proceedings from across the street.

“Julian Assange is in fighting spirit,” Baltasar Garzon, a Spanish jurist and prominent human rights investigator who heads Assange’s legal team, told reporters outside the embassy.

“He is thankful to the people of Ecuador and to President Correa for granting him asylum,” said Garzon.

Britain says the dispute is about its legal obligations and that Assange should be extradited to Sweden. But Assange says he fears he will eventually be sent to the United States although Washington has so far kept its distance from the dispute.

(Writing by Guy Faulconbridge; Additional reporting by Alessandra Prentice in London and Morag MacKinnon in Sydney; Editing by Mark Heinrich and Giles Elgood)

The case of Bradly Manning is a difficult one. During a time when the country is under the influence of criminals throughout the political spectrum. At what point do we call him a traitor for exposing his country’s secrets? Or a patriot for doing the very same thing?

I think the most important thing Julian said during this article is “As WikiLeaks stands under threat, so does the freedom of expression and the health of all of our societies” and that ‘the United States was at a turning point which could drag the rest of the world into a new oppressive era.’

I find it terrifying that the country which fought off fascism, is now poised to take over Nazi Germany as the most oppressive country in human history. We now start wars based on ‘potential threats’. These wars are started off false information and pandering by the media. The true reasons are kept secret, and there are war profiteers who make substantial gains behind the scenes, while many innocent people die in the bloodshed. We now have the largest prison population in human history, and there are ever growing accounts of police brutality, while our freedoms are surrendered at the stroke of a pen.

I know that exposing military secrets is tantamount to treason, and I certainly wouldn’t recommend acting in this way. I know that wiki-leaks isn’t necessarily a good website because of these reasons. But the pursuance of Assange and the treatment of Manning is very telling in how close they got to the mark; on how our countries are currently functioning behind the scenes. There is much criminality to be spread around, and our governments are not acting within the scope that they were intended to.

I do not believe Assange is guilty of the sexual assault allegations, I believe these are trumped up charges to get him locked up or shut up. What he and Manning did is expose the beast for what it is. Whether what they did is right or not, that is for you to decide. Because the actions that our governments take will affect you.

Where we draw the line in cases like this is the difficult part, because it is dangerous to be right when the government is wrong.

How far would you be willing to go to expose the truth or protect people who speak out? There is a difference between blind nationalism and true patriotism.

Think about it.

“Laws control the lesser man… Right conduct controls the greater one.” – Mark Twain