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| GO TO YOUR TIME-OUT ROOM
Tuesday, October 4, 2022 – column #7140
Letter to: Mr. Putin, Mr. Zelenskyy, Mr. Guterres, and leaders of freedom-loving countries,
Gentlemen and ladies,
The world will not fall apart, but some days you have to wonder about civilization as we know it.
Governments, businesses, laws, and regulations on the one hand – social media and politics on the other; there have been so many wars and conquests in history that you would think we have an abundance of intelligent beings who are not bent on the destruction of our fellow citizens and our way of life on earth.
We have the best life-saving and life-extending technologies ever and would have gotten past the destructive stupidity long ago; every dollar spent on bullets and bombs can be far better spent on education, health care, food, the arts, travel and leisure.
But it seems, collectively, we (I mean all of YOU leaders) don’t learn.
The lives of people matter; innocent civilians, soldiers and conscripts alike – don’t deserve to die.
They should work, play, pay taxes, go on vacation, eat food, make love, debate, or play at war in board games. But you don’t see that.
Sadly the citizens of Ukraine and Russia and their soldiers are today simply pieces on wargames boards of opposing death-wish strategists. Nobody seems to be able to put the cork back in the bottle; nobody seems to be able to act as a referee to send combatants to their respective corners for a time-out, a cooling off …
Take a breath, take a break, have a truce – give everyone a stand-still rest; cooler heads and negotiation will save lives, save money, save people who need food, save people from more losses than the horrific ones they’ve already suffered. And yes, there should be trials and consequences. Some people will go to jail, some people will get off – but the moment you call a pause, you call a truce, people can stop dying for their country.
The time for school-yard squabbling was long ago; it’s time to be grown-ups, time to be reminded the critical ingredient in civilization is the civil part – and history will record who were the war-mongering criminals and who were the peacemakers.
It’s a simple decision, really.
I’ve not fired a gun, don’t own one, and have no intention of taking my frustrations out on anyone with anything more than words – I believe in freedom, free speech, and going to be every night without the fear of being killed overnight.
We need peacemakers; we need pacifists.
I’m happy to be a pacifist.
How about you?
Reader feedback:
Mark, it was definitely the squirrels—I hope they have fun trying to crack golf balls when they feel a little peckish. And it was indeed a beautiful autumn morning, with plenty of time to enjoy the scenery, HM, Calgary, AB
Mark, This message gave me a strong impetus. Yes. Act now. Do now. Speak now. As the song says: “Tomorrow will be too late.” Appreciate your messages, Mark. Keep up the good work, PH, Calgary, AB
I appreciated reading your Musing this morning. It was so well written and informative. Truth can resonate in one’s soul, unlike rhetoric, that just flaunts one-sided points of view. I perceive that Putin would choose to blow up the world before ever admitting he has miss-stepped, in even the smallest of ways. Observing evil (like Hitler and Putin) with the political power to massively destroy, beyond what he has already done, calls forth from each of us the courage to say, no…but will we all be willing to hunker down and hold true, like we did with Hitler? Extremely escalated prices and unavailable commodities can lead to blind selfishness and of future consequences. I am always amazed when historical figures see so far into the future accurately…great quote, SF, Lethbridge, AB
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