A Time to Break Silence Beyond Iraq

As a nation, it has been our solemn duty to close our eyes and open our mouths to the mound of bullshit that our government is loading to us. We are the modern-day force-fed child. As we sit in our Hummer highchairs, mouths bubbling with Starbucks and McDonalds, Uncle Sam has taken it upon himself to tear handfulls of our brothers and sisters from their homes and chuck them into bomb-struck nations. There is something very wrong with this. Bedtime stories found in newspapers sooth us to sleep by saying: "Long Lasting Power in Iraq", "America Advances", and "Progress in Iraq is Fragile". There is something very wrong with this. We play in our playpens while our family is murdered "defending our nation's cause". There is something wrong with this. And in the end, the topic of war is avoided in the feeding ground of America's youth, the classroom. There are too many things wrong with this. "What difference does it make to the dead, the orphans, and the homeless, whether the mad destruction is wrought under the name of totalitarianism or the holy name of liberty and democracy?" (Ghandi). Murder is murder. Death is death. War is a crime. And not discussing it awards the government the utmost control over our lives. Why is this such an avoided topic? Why, like religion, politics, abortion, ethics, and so many more does war find itself on a never-ending list of controversial issues to avoid speaking about? I think that these issues need to be head-butted face-first. I think that it's time to realize that "every war is different, and every war is the same". I think that it's finally time to talk about these issues that hide under the rug. There are some provocative topic starters found in the daily broadcast. This is a good start. By continuing this process, and spreading it by word of mouth from the household and classroom up can our nation finally mature. Once we take our first steps into the world of acknowledgement can a change of pace begin. And we as a nation can be witness to a peaceful revolution.