Related Topics: Human Beings; Human Society; More Human Rights For More Human Beings; Re-Consider Warfare
Armistice Day. It's a holiday celebrated on the 11th day of the 11th month. These days they call it Veterans Day but it started out 100 years ago as a celebration called Armistice Day. The day commemorates an armistice. An agreement between a bunch of colonial European Nations That it was time to conclude a little exercise in slaughter which I call the war among Queen Victoria's grandchildren. Woodrow Wilson, who by the way it was both horrible racist and a wonderful progressive internationalist, called the conflict “the war to end all wars”. This was a brilliant exercise in re-branding, which actually might have started a whole new and very hopeful trend in world history. But, then as now, a group of reactionary Republican United States Senators put their ill-conceived short-term personal interests above the good of mankind. And so the emerging Imperial power declined to join in the effort its leader had inaugurated. If you all don't follow all that I just said, don't try to decipher it. The simple fact is that 100 years ago our ancestors had a chance to change the way humans interact it on this planet and initiate an era of peaceful internationalism. In celebration of that optimistic moment at the end of a horrific episode of hatred – they declared a holiday called Armistice Day. Now, in less than two decades the armistice fell apart, nationalism reemerged, and war once again began to envelop the world. So they changed the name of the holiday. Instead of celebrating the hopeful agreements which brought an end to the slaughter, they started celebrating the slaughter itself. Now a holiday glorifying slaughter would be a difficult proposition to sell even to the most rabidly nationalistic citizens. So instead they named the holiday after the primary victims of the slaughter – – – the soldiers themselves. But the key difference is that Armistice Day was a celebration of the end of war – – – of peace – – – and hope for its continuation. Veterans Day is a glorification of war. By celebrating the soldiers, the the most immediate victims of war, it is designed to actually encourage young men and women to willingly sacrifice their lives in the interests of empire and inter-nation conflict. Now I have nothing against veterans. I certainly don't blame them for the fact that the war to end all wars did not indeed accomplish peace. As Phil Okes minded us it is always the old lead us to the wars always the young who fall. But I do blame our leaders. And I do blame their owners. The corporations and aristocracies who these days control our government. Now not all those corporations and aristocracies are warmongers, but many of them are. We've had two presidents of the United States who prior to their presidencies were very successful commanders of our armies in major and mostly just conflicts. George Washington and Dwight Eisenhower. Both of them in their final messages to us as president warned that standing armies and permanent warmaking industrial establishments are bad ideas. Both of them understood the danger of warfare not only to the lives of young citizens but to our very democracy. So, On this hundredth anniversary of Armistice Day, I recommend we turn to the original intention of the holiday. Instead of celebrating war I am advocating for peace. Instead of perpetuating conflict between combative nationstates, let us all declare an armistice. Instead of fomenting hate and fear that encourages us to fight each other, let's recognize that there is no Us OR Them. There is only we and we are all in this together Instead of fighting amongst ourselves for Trumped up reasons, let's cooperate in an effort to fight against the enemies of all humanity and all earth life – – – poverty famine global warming and all the other impediments to a better life and expansion of human rights for all humanity. In that spirit, I wish y'all Happy Armistice Day