End the Cycle of Violence!
Joe Biden said “We Shall Respond” to a recent drone attack that killed 3 US military troops at a US base in Jordan and wounded dozens more. This attack on a US base (the US has more than 750 bases in 80 countries throughout the world) is part of the escalating pattern of violence in the Middle East. The US is providing a massive amount of weapons to Israel in its genocidal policies against Palestinians in Gaza. In a little more than 100 days, Israel‘s bombardment with US weapons has killed or wounded more than 100,000 Palestinians, displaced more than 90% of the 2.3 million population of Gaza, and caused massive destruction of homes, hospitals, schools, and even refugee centers. Much of the population is now facing starvation. Anger in much of the world is growing against the genocidal policies of Israel and the US. Violence is increasing and the war is widening. More violence is NOT the answer. What is needed? An immediate and permanent Ceasefire in Gaza; an end to all US military aid to Israel, an end to the illegal Israeli occupation of Palestine, a two-state solution, and a massive humanitarian inflow of aid to Gaza.
The US spends over a TRILLION dollars a year on its war machine, more than the next 10 countries combined. Much of the money is hidden such as Billions per year for nuclear weapons in the US Energy budget and billions for interest on the national debt due to US imperial wars. Meanwhile, the number of poor, homeless, and others in desperate need continues to grow. Here in Hilo, Hawaii in the past 2 weeks, a poor homeless woman in need of mental health care gave birth on a sidewalk within 30 minutes of a homeless man dying from an assault less than a block away. Days later nearby homeless encampments were swept by Hawaii county officials to make way for the display of the visiting Vietnam War Memorial “Wall that Heals.” That wall includes the names of 58,281 Americans who died in that war. No mention of the more than 60,000 US Vietnam vets who committed suicide since that war nor the millions of Vietnamese, Laotians, and Cambodians killed by the US in that war of corporate global domination.
It’s time to reset priorities and end our addiction to war. Stop the cycle of violence. Stop funding and glorifying war. Fund unmet human needs. Our Malu ‘Aina Peace Farm has been an emergency food pantry for more than 42 years, and the situation keeps getting worse. When will we ever learn?
War Kills! Peace Heals!
Malu ‘Aina Center for Non-violent Education & Action
P.O. Box 489 Ola’a (Kurtistown), Hawai’i 96760
Phone (808) 966-7622 Email ja@malu-aina.org to receive our posts.
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Feb. 2, 2024, Hilo Peace Vigil leaflet – week 1166– Fridays 3:30-5 PM downtown Post Office
