|
Why The Nuclear Research
Centre Needs Your Support by Larry Ross, founder of
the NZ Nuclear Free Peacemaking Association in 1981
The proposed new “Nuclear Research Centre” Think of the many well-endowed Washington Think Tanks and Foundations, Organizations, political parties and ‘news’ organizations and employers, etc. whose well-paid employees spew out right-wing propaganda justifying various wars like the Iraq War and the desires and directions of the military/industrial complex. Compare them with the much, much fewer, and saner Think Tanks and organizations devoted to providing the truth about the wars and dangers to us all and alternatives to achieve a much safer, sane, peaceful, just, sustainable, more prosperous, no nuclear weapons world. Go further, and compare the resources and funding of these well-paid forces backing corporate oil, similar corporations, the military/industrial complex in general, and the Bush presidency with the poorly paid, mainly unpaid voluntary organizations, (like NZ Nuclear Free Peacemaking which has a zero bank balance) who fight this juggernaut Do you think it is a fair fight and we will win it because the truth always wins? Wrong - the truth and justice often loses, particularly when the resources are so overwhelmingly against the truth. So how do you really think we can win this battle? Perhaps you think we can never win, because the forces against us are so big, so numerous, so powerful, and so well-organised that no miracle of genius has a snowball’s chance in hell of carrying the day. It’s just a Don Qiote adventure to nowhere. So there is no use wasting money to help us try or help anyone else try to save the human family from the rampaging military/industrial complex symbolised by the George Bush Administration. If that is the attitude and it’s too prevalent, we may as well give up and roll over. But for a time, we’ll continue to hope and work for peace What we are really fighting is state treasuries, their departments like the Pentagon, The CIA and other so-called US Intelligence Agencies and their offshoots like the Think Tanks, that provide so many of the executives for the military/industrial state. They are mainly in the US but also elsewhere and everywhere in the world. The forces we are campaigning against are colossal and many faceted. They are devoted to justifying and making war, creating and manufacturing weapons of war, creating the propaganda needed to justify war. They rubbish all opponents of their various wars, of their various weapons, and of the trappings of the fascist military state. They are very, very frighteningly successful, breathtakingly so. So it often seems that working against them is like Don Qiote tilting at windmills. So some people may think it’s best to just laugh at the few Don Qiotes and get back to the real world of rugby, racing, beer and other solid ‘Roman circus’ type pastimes while they last. They might say, “we’ve all got to enjoy ourselves in the meantime and let the chips fall where they may, ha, ha.” They say it like most of the Jews said it in the 1930’s, to dismiss as ridiculous the few dire predictions about Hitler, his Nazi Germany and ridiculous potential policies against Jews, who were all good German citizens. Well these Jews found out about the new Nazi truth the hard way. They were proved wrong as they starved to death, and were gassed, then burned to ashes in Hitler’s crematoria in his death camps. And if the same type of people, this time mainly gentiles, are wrong again 65 years later in today’s threatened world, earth may become the host to many, many large nuclear crematoria. So the thought may occur to some of these people “ should I just wait and see what happens, or see the obvious now” – like the few Jews who could leave Nazi Germany in time and chose to do so. Many more could have left but chose not to. They chose not to listen, or not to believe, or not to care. Today thoughtful people might think “I will do something today – like right now to make a difference.” Remember there is no place to hide and New Zealand is no refuge in our shrunken world. If the worst happens and suddenly there is a world full of nuclear crematoria everywhere, the radiation and destruction will reach every one of us in a few years. As with man-made global climate change to some degree, there is no place to hide or retreat to. It’s in your face here and everywhere - right now. So again I ask, do you think we will win, or will the enormous forces of destruction end up destroying the whole world. Is it really possible that mass insanity will destroy our world? Given the present imbalance in what people and cultures devote their resources to, there is no reason I can see that the truth and reason will prevail. History is full of failed civilisation and cultures. Were the millions of dedicated people marching against the Iraq war, and many millions more agreeing, effective in their protest?. Not that I can see. The juggernaut of war rushed on to wage their pre-planned war on Iraq, smugly smiling and smirking, and displaying their politically-generated Christian piety at every opportunity, and they lied, and had their PR men and women , and the mass media prepare to do battle for another term for themselves in office. Meanwhile the informed, thinking majority, many of whom marched or organised marches seem to have lost interest and drifted away. Why? Think about it, and the implications of this apparent phenomenon. There is every reason that the huge resources at the command of the many professional, and often good honest people in the military/industrial complex, will prevail and that the empire-building nuclear madness has taken over the Western world and inexorably will roll on to eventually unleash the forces that will destroy every living thing. All it takes is for people to drift away, focus on other issues, or decide that the important nuclear issues are not for them – and decide not to do anything constructive that might help rectify humanities perilous situation. So these are some of the reasons we appeal to you for support, to allow us to continue our work. It can rapidly increase in size and scope, but only if people and organisational support makes this possible. I would be just as pleased if people decided to fund other peace organisations they prefer, or thought could do a better job, so long as they give, and give generously to make a peaceful, sane, sustainable, just, kind, no nuclear weapons world. Give us your comment, tell us what you think. Would you like to be a part of these efforts as an individual, or as a donor to make it all possible? You can reach us by email:- nuclearfreenz@lynx.co.nz
|
