Total number of comments: 1 (since 2010-07-20 21:38:48)
jewishwiccancatholicworker
Long time member of War Resisters League and Jewish Voice for Peace. Since July, 2008, been working out of Las Vegas, NV for Nevada Desert Experience organizing interfaith resistance to nuclear weapons and war. Moved here from a life devoted to activism and service in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Website: http://NevadaDesertExperience.org
The author of the original piece obviously hates advocates of nonviolent revolution over all, as he buys into the attacks on Gene Sharp which always seemed spurious and which were well addressed by Stephen Zunes last year in something he wrote for Foreign Policy in Focus (link to fpif.org
And maybe pacifists like to over-claim victory, but in the last century revolutionary struggles mostly needed their nonviolent actors or they wouldn't have had any life in them or chance to succeed. There were overthrows without blood-letting; that is a sign of growth. Now if only some of thost movements would hold to their repudiation of violence and arms once they come to power...
And I'm not advocating for Palestinians to do anything; I am standing with Palestinians who already reject violence and the taking up of arms for social change. I may or may not take up a fighting stance or even a weapon in self-defense or in defense of someone else, but I wouldn't see that as helping a movement, or doing something that will save us societally from other violence. Sometimes I like to quip that I am in the War Resisters League, not the Violence Rejecters League, but I have been in attack situations and haven't resorted to violence in the past; still, we never know.
In 2008, the WRL Peace Calendar featured 60 or more examples of nonviolent resistance and organizing spanning the Greater Middle East from Western Sahara to Pakistan. There were numerous examples of Palestinian and joint Palestinian/Israeli nonviolence, some practical and some principled. I edited it, and in my intro, I point out that my original vision was to focus solely on Palestine and name it "52 Palestinian Gandhis" challenging the ignorant lament I hear far too often from well-meaning people, "If only there were a Palestinian Gandhi." When I reject conscription and militarism, I am standing in support and solidarity with the millions of people around the world who choose to demonstrate against violent repression like we usually aren't subjected to in the U.S. When I reject violent organizing, I stand with the realists who see taking up arms repeatedly making things worse for most people, not better.
And many pacifists are willing and able to argue against military or para-military actions putting aside our overarching critique of such actions. One doesn't have to be a pacifist to see how stupid war is.