I Am Not 'War-Weary'

I Am Not 'War-Weary'

By Kelly Rae Kraemer
Common Dreams.org
September 8, 2013

I am not ‘war-weary’; I’m angry

… angry at those who used sarin in Syria
… angry at those who think more killing is the answer
… angry at all presidents with blood on their hands
… angry at the talking heads who distinguish worthy,
from unworthy victims
… angry at politicians who care more about ‘credibility’
than about human life
… angry at those who call for war any time the flag is waved
… and angry at the endless headlines that claim we’re just
‘war-weary’, as though one good head-clearing nap would
make Americans see the wisdom of killing to punish killing.

I am not ‘war-weary’; I’m sick

… sick at the sight of so many dead from breathing poison in Damascus
… sick at the thought of so many dead or damaged by uranium
in Fallujah
… sick at the thought of Afghans massacred in Kandahar
… sick at the memory of Japanese vaporized in Hiroshima
and Nagasaki
… sick at the memory of all the young soldiers sent to kill
and die
… sick at the thought of all those shot, bayoneted, bombed,
gassed, and nuked in war
… and sick at the thought of those who will die in a US attack
on Damascus, because a ‘limited’ attack is still an attack.

I am not ‘war-weary’, but I am tired

… tired of peace prizes going to warmakers
… tired of politicians who play games with people’s lives
… tired of presidents and legislators who ignore the laws
they’ve sworn to uphold
… tired of war drum beating that passes for journalism
… tired of the claim that war can be ‘humanitarian’
… tired of indoctrination into the false belief that war
can bring peace
… and tired, so tired of hearing there will be “no boots
on the ground”, as if a war that only kills foreigners is
morally acceptable.

I am not ‘war-weary’; I am anti-war

… because war is always a failure
… a failure of diplomacy and understanding
… a failure of will and effort
… a failure of imagination and creativity
… a failure of ingenuity and investment
… a failure of compassion and morality
… a failure to invent and practice real,
nonviolent humanitarian action.

I am not ‘war-weary’; I’m hungry for peace.



Kelly Rae Kraemer, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Peace Studies
at the College of St. Benedict/St. John’s University in Central
Minnesota.

http://www.commondreams.org/further/2013/09/05-2