MetaFilter posts tagged with peace

Obama wins Nobel Prize Peace 2009

NekulturnY — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 02:11:30 -0800

Barack Obama wins Nobel Prize for Peace 2009. Isn't this kind of... soon?

Are Peace Negotiations in the Cards?

Ironmouth — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 09:18:44 -0800

Are Peace Negotiations hosted by Russia and France in the cards? Today, President Obama is meeting with Israeli PM Netanyahu and the Palestian Authority's Abbas and then hosting a three-way meeting with both leaders. Officially all parties claim they have "low expectations." But is this really the case? On August 25, in a little-noticed article, the Guardian claimed that negotiations "have reached such an advanced stage that both France and Russia have approached the US offering to host a peace conference." The Guardian article went on to state that the President had Obama "pencilled in the announcement of his breakthrough for either a meeting of world leaders at the UN general assembly in New York in the week beginning 23 September or the G20 summit in Pittsburgh on 24-25 September." And other events may be a tell. Last week, Obama ordered a major change in US missile defense plans, moving a proposed deployment from Poland and the Czech Republic to ships in the Eastern Mediterranean sea. The President argued that Iranian threats required a quick response. Russia reciprocated quickly, announcing on Saturday that it was scrapping a proposed missile deployment near Poland. Russia didn't stop there. In reaction to Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's statements that the Holocaust was a "lie," the Russian Foreign Ministry stated that the remarks were “absolutely unacceptable’’ and insulting to the memory of the World War II victims. The question remains--was the Guardian right? Were last week's moves by the US and Russia a prelude to a peace conference which Russia will help host? Is another round of peace talks coming? We'll find out soon.

Cigarrettes, whisky and wild, wild women

idiomatika — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 06:26:52 -0800

Henry Allingham, the world's oldest man, has died aged 113. Born in 1896, Mr. Allingham became a teenager for the second time last month. He was a veteran of the Battle of Jutland in 1916. A poignant memory from WWI: "The scenes he witnessed of soldiers waiting to go over the top at Ypres have stayed with him ever since. “They would just stand there in 2ft of water in mud-filled trenches, waiting to go forward,” he said. “They knew what was coming. It was pathetic to see those men like that. I don’t think they have ever got the admiration and respect they deserved.”

He laughed like an irresponsible foetus

TheophileEscargot — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 02:30:17 -0800

Parts 1, 2, 3 of a 1959 interview with philosopher, mathematician and peace campaigner Bertrand Russell (1872-1970). Works and pictures online include Anti-suffragist Anxieties, Why I am not a Christian, the Russell-Einstein Manifesto against nuclear weapons and the book The Conquest of Happiness. Russell is also known for his pithy quotes, his teapot and was the subject of poem Mr Apollinax by T.S. Eliot.

Zoroastrianism...

hadjiboy — Mon, 18 May 2009 02:25:45 -0800

The Parsis of India: Their Photo Collection, a brief History and more. And their mention in the Time Magazine, and the BBC. (Previously).

Palestinian musician expelled from West Bank

Joe in Australia — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 19:04:16 -0800

Wafa Younis is an Arab Israeli musician who organised a youth orchestra in the Jenin refugee camp. She recently brought her orchestra to play for Holocaust survivors at an Israeli old age home. The performance was strongly criticised by Palestinians as a hostile political act. Now the orchestra has been disbanded, its performance space sealed, and Ms Younis has been expelled from the West Bank. This is really depressing. What chance can there be for peace if people react this way?

A chance for a Middle East peace

homunculus — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 14:36:22 -0800

Syria Calling: The Obama Administration’s chance to engage in a Middle East peace.

I'm not killing nobody no more

shetterly — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 21:41:12 -0800

Three US veterans testify. (If the interrogator is too Christian for you, skip to the Vietnam vet.) Also, Shministim. Utah Phillips on pacifism. A First World War Christian Conscientious Objector Remembered. Previously on MeFi: Iraq veteran Joshua Casteel: from US interrogator at Abu Ghraib to conscientious objector.

History of War and Peace Collection

Rumple — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 12:03:01 -0800

Peace and War in the 20th Century is an ambitious, in progress, massive assemblage of posters, photographs, propaganda, ephemera, letters, diaries, paintings, sketches, stories, letters, music and related items, from McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario. The collection is international in scope. Some of the nodes lack content, and the navigation is a little confusing, so the jump I list some of my favourite case studies from their site. Note: Many of the images are reasonable resolution if you right click and open in a new tab rather than only view in the pop-forward window. Also scroll down for thumbnails of additional material. The advanced search option is very useful as it includes a detailed site map. Representing War: Posters, Art and Music. Many of the posters are unusual and new to me, such as 'Save Waste Bones - They Make Glue for Aircraft', 'Boys, Come Along, You're Wanted', and this beautiful poster of the Earth and Doves. Concentration Camp correspondence Sir Norman Angell: a lifelong proponent of peace (many images of his pamphlets and posters) The Spanish Civil War: Foreign Intervention, American Reaction. Includes evocative pamphlets, leaflets, and posters. Waging War London prepares for World War II: a great selection of instructional and civil defence materials such as posters and memos. Britain prepares for World War I: some diary pages of Adrian Duff. William Frank Kenwood, Canadian Pilot and Prisoner of War, including newspaper clippings, a letter from the Red Cross, telegrams, etc. Vera Brittain's diaries and pamphlets Canadian Women's Roles in World War I: anything new in war work? Mapping and Photographing World War I: interesting instructional materials, etc. The Nuclear Disarmament Movement, which includes a great collection of very striking posters and leaflets. Evolving Technology in World War I, which includes numerous artistic visions of machine guns, tanks, etc. War Resisters, including pamphlets. World War 1 in the Middle East I like this typed report of a raid. I also like this leaflet against War Toys. As I noted, there is a huge amount of great stuff at this site, interspersed with some dead ends as one would expect from a work in progress.

Sixth generation warfare: boner pills.

mek — Fri, 26 Dec 2008 21:07:12 -0800

The little blue pill goes to war.

Silent Night

twoleftfeet — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 04:12:15 -0800

Silent Night in English, German, Irish, Arapaho, Czech, Italian, Finnish, Russian, Hungarian, Swedish, Norwegian, Portuguese, Japanese, French, Spanish and another 120 languages. The official song of the Christmas truce. Additional performances by Simon & Garfunkel, John Denver & the Muppets, Elvis, Andy Williams, The White Stripes, Britney Spears, Frank Sinatra, The Three Tenors, Olivia Newton John, Bing Crosby, Tom Waits, Jewel, Stevie Nicks, Stevie Nicks with Tom Petty, Mariah Carey, Nat King Cole, Aaron Neville, Aretha Franklin, Martha Raye, Johnny Cash & his mother, Hanson, Christina Aguilera, Rick Astley, Barbra Streisand, The Mormon Tabernacle Choir (with Walter Cronkite), Mahalia Jackson, Dean Martin, Joan Baez, Tammy Wynette, in American Sign Language, Joe Satriani, Beyoncé, Bobby Darin, Pat Boone, Jess & Nick, Josh Groban, Neil Diamond, Johnny Mathis, Karen Carpenter, Bee Gees, Liza Minelli, Béla Fleck, Aaron Neville & Linda Rondstadt, David Hasselhoff, some cats, some more cats, and a drunk reindeer. A little history. Merry Xmas MeFi.

Can Facebook Save the World

cal71 — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 08:34:22 -0800

"Can Facebook defeat terrorism?" wonders Matt Armstrong. A conference of both web and social entrepreneurs, policy wonks, and activists will convene to create a how-to guide for changing the world through social networking tools. Jared "Children of Jihad" Cohen was a driving force behind the initiative. We've seen social networking impact an election, while others are already trying to change the world with it. This conference, while exciting and important, raises a few questions. Just look at the list who's convening it: "Facebook, Google, YouTube, MTV, Howcast, Columbia Law School and the U.S. Department of State Convene the Alliance of Youth Movements Summit." As Steve Corman notes: "...merely giving Facebook (or other social networking technologies) to people in other terrorism hotspots will probably do little until the right social conditions develop for them to have an imact. Facebook, by itself, is not enough to cause social movements that can defeat terrorism." Well said. Aren't the unique cultural conditions in each of these "hot spots" being ignored under the relatively new (and market-driven) idea of "global youth culture"? MTV is one of the organizers of this event, and they are certainly invested in promoting a global youth culture (read Naomi Klein's No Logo, ch 5 for more on this). Is this the apotheosis of certain brand identities, the moment when corporations merge with the government and with the left simultaneously? Will this initiative address the challenges of creating peaceful dialogue among cultures, or simply become overly enamored of the tools at its disposal? Do young people want their social networking time to be productive? Could Spam bring it all down? What about the digital divide? Shouldn't we be focusing on the more pressing technological issues that most people face? Can we do both at the same time? I'm very curious to hear feedback from the Blue on this.

Let's sit down and talk this over.

Free word order! — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 04:30:46 -0800

President Martti Ahtisaari wins the Nobel Peace Prize. A former Finnish President, an UN envoy, a social democrat, a school teacher and founder of Crisis Management Initiative has negotiated for peace in many troubled areas for three decades. Last fall and last summer CMI (without Ahtisaari's presence) called former Northern Ireland and South African militants to use their experience for finding Iraqi factions a way out of bloodshed. A plan for Kosovo. Negotiations ending 30-year conflict in Aceh, Indonesia. Negotiating Namibia independence. Got conflict? Mr. Ahtisaari is your man.

A Break From The Insanity

SeizeTheDay — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 04:54:00 -0800

Here's an article and slideshow to help escape the worries of the world. A great article and slideshow about the Hindu temples in Tamil Nadu (Southeastern India). (NYTimes)

I Met the Walrus

milestogo — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 14:31:17 -0800

I Met the Walrus In 1969, 14-year-old Jerry Levitan snuck into John Lennon's hotel room in Toronto and convinced John to do an interview about peace. This is the whimsically animated film that Jerry has produced about the interview.

Will They Make The World An Offer It Can't Refuse?

amyms — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 20:28:04 -0800

Pax Corleone Americana? "Can any of the candidates vying to become the next president of the United States match Michael’s cool, dispassionate courage in the face of epochal change? Will they avoid living in the comforting embrace of the past, from which both Tom and Sonny ultimately could not escape? Or will they emulate Michael’s flexibility—to preserve America’s position in a dangerous world?" The Godfather as metaphor.

'World Peace' Hitcher Murdered.

semmi — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 12:25:59 -0800

Performance Artist Killed on Peace Trip. Pippa Bacca, performance artist, and friend wearing white wedding dresses, planned to hitchhike from Italy to the Balkans to the Middle East to send a message of peace and “marriage between different peoples and nations.” After three weeks on the road, Pippa Bacca was killed by a driver who offered her a ride. Her naked body was found and local authorities said Ms. Bacca had been raped and strangled.

The Good Life

hadjiboy — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 08:40:34 -0800

Do you remember those days when mom and dad used to pack you up in the back of the station wagon and drive you to grandma's and grandpa's? Or when you were a dreamer with nothing else on your mind but to escape from the one street town to the big city? Have you ever dreamed of going back, maybe to settle down, get in touch with your roots, and start a new life for yourself. Well, here's your chance. Why not just get up and do it this time. Sure, it's not going to be easy, but maybe it's the change you've been looking for. On the other hand, maybe not, so be advised. But whatever you decide, it sure does look like a way of life that does hold a lot of potential. The Time and NYT articles linked to are quite outdated ('80 and '87 if I'm not mistaken) so maybe if some of the USians can chime in and corroborate what the authours of those pieces had expected at that time, it would be much appreciated. All I was able to dig up were these two USA Today articles if it's of any help.

When in Rome

hadjiboy — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 09:17:36 -0800

So, you're planning to take a trip around the world, are you? Well, in that case--you'll need to know a couple of things before you leave (in order not to offend the sensibilities of the local population). Let's see--suppose you're making your way through Azerbaijan for example, and your host happens to be a businessman who is about to embark on a journey to the city: what would you do to give him the appropriate send off? Would you:

a) Bid him farewell and shake his hand.
b) Dance in front of him and do a traditional jig that everyone else is doing in order to ward off evil spirits.
c) Throw a bowl of water in his wake.

Don't know, well, that's okay. Let's try another one, shall we? Let's say you're in Croatia this time and have been invited for dinner: Now, do you...

a) Finish all of the food on your plate to show how much you've appreciated the meal. b) Finish almost all of the meal and leave a little portion behind to show that you are finished. c) Finish almost all of the meal and leave a little portion behind to show that you'd like a second helping. Are we getting anywhere? Alright, alright: last question--I swear! Now, say you're in Indonesia and you need to buy gifts for your Chinese-Indonesian, Muslim-Indonesian, and Hindu-Indonesian friends: which one of these gifts would be advisable for whom?

a) A nice leather calf-skin wallet. b) An ancient Samurai Sword that you got for a bargain. c) A bread basket from Drake's that's just opened round the corner.

Paz sin fronteras

micayetoca — Sun, 16 Mar 2008 17:21:43 -0800

Peace Without Borders. Colombian singer Juanes put together a concert calling for peace, as a result of the recent crisis between Colombia and Ecuador (and tangentially, Venezuela). Remarkably, it was held from the bridge between Venezuela and Colombia, in what is normally a very problematic border, and it featured the great Carlos Vives, the Dominican Juan Luis Guerra, and others. Other appearances: Juanes himself: 1, More Carlos Vives: 1, 2, 3, More Juan Luis Guerra: 1, 2 From Ecuador, Juan Fernando Velasco: 1, 2 Alejandro Sanz: 1, 2

Harmony, just do it

nickyskye — Sun, 27 Jan 2008 14:42:28 -0800

YouTube in partnership with The Davos Forum has established a great "contest" although I don't think of it like that. YouTubers are asked to submit a video answering the question "What one thing do you think that countries, companies or individuals must do to make the world a better place in 2008?" I thought a long time about the question, and then, after approaching Mayor Gavin Newsom to be in the video, then getting caught up against deadlines, I had the answer: to end racism around the World. Here's the video. Here's Emma Thompson's response.

a parable of rodents and men

madamjujujive — Mon, 24 Dec 2007 08:37:56 -0800

Peace on Earth - 1939 Disney animation directed by Hugh Harman. And Goodwill to Men, a 1955 remake by Hanna-Barbera.

And So This Is Christmas?

jonp72 — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 20:25:46 -0800

George W. Bush covers John Lennon's War Is Over (If You Want It) in a collaboration with Wax Audio. Another coverversion of John Lennon's God is included on the B-side of the new limited edition 45. On the other hand, Yoko sez, "Vote Kucinich!" (previously on Mefi)

"And I am even supposed to love our enemies.”

amberglow — Thu, 18 Oct 2007 16:20:41 -0800

"Killing others is not loving them.” --meet US Army Captain Peter D. Brown, just granted Conscientious Objector status due to his religious beliefs and honorably discharged after first being denied and taking them to court---only 224 applicants were approved for it during 02-06, out of 2.3 million serving. ... While deployed in Iraq for more than a year, Brown applied for discharge from the Army as a conscientious objector. Though the Army-appointed Chaplain and Investigating Officer designated to investigate Brown’s conscientious objector application concluded that he was sincere and recommended that he be honorably discharged, the Army disagreed and his request was denied. In July 2007, the New York Civil Liberties Union and the American Civil Liberties Union of the National Capital Area intervened on Brown’s behalf and asked a federal court in Washington, DC to order the honorable discharge. Before the court acted, the Army reconsidered the issue, this time granting Brown’s request. ... from the Medill link: ... But some veterans who oppose the war in Iraq, say the actual numbers of conscientious objectors has been underreported due to the difficult application process and because peer pressure within a military unit discourages conscientious objectors. The Government Accountability Office report found that from 2002 to 2006 the active and reserve components of all the military reported processing 425 applications for conscientious objectors of approximately 2.3 million current service members. Of the 425 applications, 224 (53 percent) were approved,188 (44 percent) were denied and 13 (3 percent) were pending, according to the GA0, an arm of Congress. ...

How to Make Israeli Palestinian Peace Summit Succeed

richards1052 — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 01:35:33 -0800

The greybeards of the U.S. foreign policy establishment have spoken out to the Bush Administration telling it what it needs to do to have a successful Mideast peace summit: advocate a return to '67 borders, Jerusalem as capital of two states, solution of refugee problem with financial compensation to Palestinians, security guarantees for Israel. Signatories of the statement include Zbigniew Brzezinski, Brent Scowcroft, Nancy Kassebaum, Carla Hills, Thomas Pickering, Ted Sorensen and Paul Volcker. A pretty formidable bunch. Here are the particulars: * Two states, based on the lines of June 4, 1967, with minor, reciprocal, and agreed-upon modifications as expressed in a 1:1 land swap; * Jerusalem as home to two capitals, with Jewish neighborhoods falling under Israeli sovereignty and Arab neighborhoods under Palestinian sovereignty; * Special arrangements for the Old City, providing each side control of its respective holy places and unimpeded access by each community to them; * A solution to the refugee problem that is consistent with the two-state solution, addresses the Palestinian refugees' deep sense of injustice, as well as provides them with meaningful financial compensation and resettlement assistance; * Security mechanisms that address Israeli concerns while respecting Palestinian sovereignty.