Wednesday, February 02, 2011

Peace and Justice



Quaker-led peace activists continue with their nine-years-and-counting, hour-long, noontime Thursday vigil in front of the United States Federal building on Golden Gate Avenue. They are bearing witness to the fact that our government is responsible for war and mayhem all over the globe, and feel strongly this is not the best way for the world to operate.



The U.S. also has a nasty habit of bolstering repressive regimes around the world. In the exploding cases of our allies Tunisia and Egypt, the governments are fatally out of touch with their young, globally connected citizens. Via James Wolcott, here are a few interesting essays on the situation. Click here for Immanuel Wallerstein's take and here for Franklin C. Spinney's essay about Obama raising expectations in the Arab world, only to disappoint them terribly. "In contrast to the euphoria surrounding the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Arab Revolt of 2011 leaves one with a disquieting sense that we may be standing on the wrong side of history." Even more detailed is Esam Al-Amin's "The Making of Egypt's Revolution" at Counterpunch.

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