Issues, ethics, memory
We spent three days earlier this year in Lübeck, Germany. The city centre is post card scenic and has been named a UNESCO World Heritage site. We were impressed by what we thought were ancient buildings. What we discovered is that most of them were rebuilt after the Allies decided to focus their bombing raids on German civilians, beginning in 1942.
NATO leaders, including Canada, have agreed to spend 5.0% of Gross Domestic Product on the military. Prime Minister Mark Carney says Canada will more than double its military spending. That will fuel the arms race and crowd out spending on much-need social programs.
NATO and the Trump regime in the US are demanding that Canada drastically increase military spending. We should, rather, apply a peace lens. It would include a greater emphasis upon diplomacy and peacebuilding in concert with military spending.
Shrouq Al Aila, a young Palestinian journalist, spoke to us directly from Gaza recently. She told us that she could hear explosions from Israeli bombs nearby. It has been a deadly year for journalists in Gaza, not to mention the rest of the people there. Hearing Shrouq talk was a disturbing and enlightening experience.
American writer Nicholson Baker spent ten frustrating years trying to get information from the US military about its biological weapons program.
Pulpit and Politics 