THE FAILURE

Ok, so I was dead wrong: Bush and his cronies were determined to whack Iraq--with or without provocation, and with or without public consent. Also, the only reason why the "shock and awe attack" has not taken place is that the army is waiting for a night where both the moon and the sun are out of the sky for 8 hours straight. By this I do not mean to sound as if I myself am not in shock and awe that this government could be so sinister in its utter disregard for global and domestic dissent, let alone as if the atrocities that have already been committed in the opening stages of the war have not already induced shock and awe in the Iraqi people. All Im saying is that the worst is yet to come.

In my head is a song by Frank Sinatra called "I've got the world on a string." It's funny how I thought that I had such a clear understanding of what was going on---of what the anxieties were in the minds of world leaders. Obviously, there is really no way of knowing what is going on at the "top." I dont want to think and feel that I am powerless to stop current and future atrocities, but it is difficult not to do so when one gets slapped in the face over and over again by elites who do the wrong thing in spite of every conserted effort on the part of objectors to stop them. Indeed, most of the crucial decisions about the world are made behind closed doors. I may have the world on a string, but it certainly seems like that string has me tied up--big time.

If there is a lesson to be learned here, let it be this: may we never become conscientious objectors for the sole purpose of changing that which we speak out against--as this would only lead to tragic dissapointment. Let us, instead, also become conscientious objectors because it is our duty to try to help humanity, no matter what the odds are against us.