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From: S. Thompson <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subject: ONE DAY OF PEACE (fixed)
Date: Thursday, December 31, 1998 5:30 PM
Apologies for the previous garbled message. We've been having power
outages all day, and one struck just as I hit "send".
ONE DAY OF PEACE
Sarah Thompson, M.D.
The following "thought-wave campaign" (a politically correct term for
SPAM,internet hoaxes, and self-delusion) has been appearing in my mailbox
periodically for quite some time now, most recently by way of a
well-meaning acquaintance:
"ONE DAY OF PEACE - JANUARY 1, 2000
This is a 24-hour concept where no guns are fired anywhere on
Earth....including on television.
What if, for 24-hours, whoever happens to be at war on December 31st, 1999,
agrees that for one whole day no guns would be fired? The silence would be
golden. And what if the television programmers of the world agreed to not
air any programmes with a violent content? (It would probably be easier to
get warring nations to stop firing than it would be to get the world's
television programmers to not air violent programmes.)
At present, this ONE DAY OF PEACE concept is beginning to get further
circulated. On April 6, 1997, it was 1000 days until January 1, 2000. This
is a thought-wave campaign. Which is to say, the more people who actually
grasp this thought, understand its potential, and can do something about
it, the more it could become reality...
ONE DAY OF PEACE, JANUARY 1, 2000...PASS IT ON...EXPECT A MIRACLE...."
Such easily-propagated messages, to use the lingo of the gun-grabbers, act
as pathogens, and thus are a threat to public health and safety. While
previous "thought-wave campaigns" (remember "Hands Across America"?) have
proven themselves to be at best ineffectual, and at worst a waste of time
and energy, campaigns such as this have the potential to cause serious harm
to those who accept them without thinking. So I thought that, in honor of
the new year, a response is both appropriate and timely.
Peace, of course, is one of those things that almost everyone supports, at
least in theory. But in order to achieve peace, one must know both what it
is, and what conditions are necessary to maintain it.
My trusty OED defines "peace" as "freedom from, or cessation of, war or
hostilities" and "freedom from civil commotion and disorder, public order
and security". (Those are only the first two definitions, but they give us
a place to start.) Unfortunately, the dictionary only _defines_ peace; it
doesn't tell us how to achieve it.
I don't know whether Saddam Hussein, or Slobodan Milosevic, or any of the
world's many tyrants and terrorists have internet access. But I don't for
a minute believe that they'll all agree to lay down their guns for a day.
And even if they did, what would that accomplish? Is it more likely that
they'll wake up on Jan. 2 and decide to cancel hostilities forever, or that
they'll simply resume where they left off?
Should Washington have refused to attack the British in Trenton on
Christmas Night of 1776 because it was a "Day of Peace"? Would we now have
peace or freedom on this continent had he done so?
Should the Israelis have lain down their guns and surrendered when they
were attacked on Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the year for Jews? Would
there now be peace in the Middle East?
And isn't it a bit telling that these advocates of global disarmament
mention only _guns_? What about bombs, missiles, land mines, chemical and
biological weapons? Are those still okay for our "day of peace"?
People who believe that simply "not firing guns for one whole day" will
somehow facilitate "the cessation of war or hostilities" or encourage
"public order and security" are engaging in what psychologists call
"magical thinking". They probably believe that clapping their hands will
save Tinkerbell too.
What about those "evil" televisions programmers accused of encouraging
violence? The truth is that television programmers are not rugged
individualists nor do they have many principles. They simply broadcast
what they believe will sell their advertisers' products. If they show
people firing guns, it's because that's what sells cars or cereal or beer.
Live coverage of wars sells exceptionally well - just ask the folks at CNN.
If the supporters of "One Day of Peace" find this objectionable, wouldn't
it make more sense for them to simply _stop watching_ guns on TV, not only
for one day, but forever?
And what exactly is it that TV programmers shouldn't be showing? Is it
"real violence" or "pretend violence" we need to eliminate? Are
documentaries about the many wars in which Americans fought with courage
and honor acceptable? Should we banish "Saving Private Ryan", or "High
Noon" or "Apocalypse Now"? What about "Braveheart" which has swords and
torture, but no guns? Will anyone listen to talking heads reading
non-violent news, when they can see graphic footage? What about the
football games which are little more than live, gratuitous violence?
(Sorry, football fans! <g>)
Should we shut down the radio stations and MTV because quite a large number
of songs contain violent lyrics? What about burning books with violent
content? That, of course, would have to include the Bible, the Koran, and
the Ramayana. They're all full of battles and violence. So maybe we
should close all the Houses of Worship for the day too.
And is violence the only problem facing us that is glamorized by TV?
Shouldn't we also eliminate the soap operas (daytime and prime time) with
their endless stream of adultery, illegitimate children, substance abuse,
and severely dysfunctional lifestyles?
There's another thing you should notice. The "Day of Peace" is scheduled
for Jan. 1, 2000. That's right - the day the Y2K problem is expected to
hit with full force.
Now I'm not going to predict what's actually going to happen that day, or
whether Y2K computer glitches are going to be a serious problem. What I do
know is that large numbers of people are worried about what's going to
happen, and those people will act on those concerns.
In other words, many people will have large amounts of cash or jewels or
precious metals in their homes. They'll be carrying large amounts of cash,
either because they don't trust banks and credit cards, or because
merchants don't trust them and won't accept their credit cards or checks.
Some of these people will also have stored food, water and medicine.
Criminals will view these people as wonderful targets, which they will be -
unless of course, they're armed.
We also don't know how Y2K will affect our military, and more to the point,
we don’t know how it will affect the military operations of other nations.
Maybe some missiles will accidentally (or intentionally) launch, headed for
New York, or Washington, or Los Angeles. But after all, peace is a worthy
goal, so all our planes should remain on the ground, and all our military
forces should be on leave. With luck, the civil defense sirens will still
work.
So what will the brave, new, millenium of peace be like on Jan. 1, 2000?
For a start, you won't be able to leave your house. The police will all be
off duty since they won't have any way to stop violent criminals or defend
themselves. Criminals, who are notoriously immune to "thought waves", will
be running rampant, assaulting people for their cash or jewelry, rioting
and looting, and raping any woman who happens to catch their eyes. Stores
and businesses will be closed.
There won't be much to watch on TV, other than warnings to stay indoors.
There might be a few old romance movies and 50's sit-coms, and maybe round
the clock "Barney". But most of the cartoons will be off the air, since
even superheroes sometimes resort to violence. News will be blacked out,
although there will be armed conflicts and terrorist actions throughout the
world.
There won't be anything much on the radio either, since news will be off
the air, talk show hosts will have to be "nice", and most music will be
silenced.
The football games will be cancelled because of their violence, and the New
Year's parades will be cancelled for "public safety" reasons. The internet
will be shut down because it's too hard to censor or control.
If you're lucky, no air raid sirens will sound, no criminals or rioters
will attack your home, and you'll spend the day trapped in your home
suffering from boredom. But you'll fare a good deal better than the
residents of Bosnia, Rwanda, Israel, or any of the other hot spots around
the world.
Is this how you'd like to live the rest of your lives, or how you'd like
your children to live? Is this "peace"?
Of course not! Allowing thugs and criminals to take over the world is not
"peace". Abandoning your liberty and your principles is not "peace".
Spending your days quaking in fear behind locked doors and barred windows
is not "peace". Peace cannot be achieved by rolling over and playing dead.
Peace can only be achieved and maintained through strength, the courage to
stand for what is right, and the willingness to fight for it.
Peace requires the ability to defend yourself, your family, your community
and your nation. Peace requires a willingness to use deadly force when
necessary. Peace requires the _means_ to resist criminals and tyrants.
It makes no sense to pretend that the "bad guys" don't use violence to
achieve their goals; they do. It makes no sense to pretend that the "good
guys" shouldn't respond with force; they must. It's insane to even wish to
eradicate the stories of brave people throughout history who fought for
liberty and peace so that spoiled pacifists could whine about "too much
violence".
Like all people of good will, I pray that the coming century will be less
violent than the current one, which the human race should count itself
lucky to have survived this far. I, too, would like to live out my days in
peace and have my children do the same.
Anyone who wants to disarm the BATF, the DEA, the IRS, FEMA, or any other
of our newly militarized federal agencies has my full support.
But I hope that by Jan. 1, 2000, our military will be back to full fighting
strength. I hope our police forces will return to their original mission -
"to serve and to protect". I hope that all Americans will realize the
importance of being armed and prepared to defend themselves. The advocates
of global socialism and disarmament, the ones who spell the word
"programmes", can fend for themselves; we'd be better off without them.
As for me and my family, we'll be well-stocked and well-armed and prepared
to fight for our rights, our liberty, our property and our lives. That is
the _only_ way to assure a lasting peace.
My very best wishes to you and yours for a new year of _real_ peace,
happiness, prosperity and liberty.
Feel free to share this column with anyone who drops any "One Day of Peace"
junk mail in your mailbox. Consider it a contribution to "public health".
Copyright 1998 Sarah Thompson, M.D.
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