Storyline

http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/interrogation/2016/05/the_u_s_and_japan_have_very_different_memories_of_world_war_ii.html

An  excellent summation of the issues. Some points from the article I'd like to highlight:  1. "You have to separate out the Japanese public from the right-wing politicians."  The Japanese people in general, the author notes, want to compensate the comfort women and face the evils of the past.  The politicians don't.  2. The American people regard the dropping of the bomb as the end of the story and the war. The Japanese people regard the dropping of the bomb as the beginning of the story; the story of their liberation from evil rulers and of their devotion to prevent future wars.

Sense And Nonsense

In response to a news article indicating that The president would visit the peace center at Hiroshima, I posted:

Good for the president!

Also, two points: 1. There is no doubt that dropping the bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki saved many American lives. It is also beyond doubt that it saved many more Japanese lives. This point seems to be forgotten by almost everyone who discusses the issue. Far more Japanese civilians would have died in an American invasion than died in Hiroshima  and Nagasaki.


2. The article quotes a peace advocate.   --The president, Martin said, "will look insincere if his words espouse ridding the world of nuclear weapons while at the same time his administration continues its plan to spend a trillion dollars over thirty years to upgrade nuclear weapons.” --  This is nonsense. No doubt, foolish people will be so deluded. The fact remains, however, that the American nuclear arsenal cannot simply be unilaterally disbanded. Disbanding it requires cooperation with other nations, which has currently not been forthcoming. Therefore, the United States has a large stockpile of nuclear weapons which are in a dangerously aged and unreliable condition. Upgrading them is simply a safety precaution. This is not the act of a hypocrite. It is the act of a prudent man.

I'm Sorry, So Sorry. Please Accept My Apologies...

In response to a news report regarding the frequently discussed question of whether Secretary Kerry might apologize for the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki during his visit to Hiroshima I posted the following.

The irony is absolutely profound. The nation in which conducted some of the worst atrocities in the history of mankind (and still refuses to sincerely apologize for them) nevertheless expects an apology from one of her victims because her atrocities were the seeds of later atrocities. I could thoroughly support the peace efforts at Hiroshima if they were entirely directed at ending war. That is a strong thread in the web, of course, but there is also a strong thread of "Poor Japan" and even "Wicked America". This reality is brutal, disgusting, almost unthinkable, but the use of the atomic bomb saved both Japanese and American lives. War is an atrocity. War is always an atrocity. That is the message, or at least, it should be.

Why Not Just Walk Away?

This is my (now proofread) response to an article (which I can no longer locate) suggesting that all our efforts to make things better in the Middle East simply makes things worse. The author feels that we would actually be doing the people in the Middle East a favor by simply walking away, not to mention the benefits to ourselves. He makes a good case and it is an interesting contribution to the discussion:

Interesting idea, but American domestic politics make abandoning peace efforts in the Middle East impossible. Large segments of the American electorate are intellectually and religiously tied to Israel in a way that is not always understandable of those of us who do not share their obsession. If you do not accept the Bible as infallible, literal, and inerrant; then you can consider such a policy. But if you accept the Bible as those things, then it is clear that Israel is the center of the world. Even while proclaiming that we are a Christian nation and one nation under God and even a blessed nation superior to all others; these voters believe that, biblically, Israel is the only nation that really matters.

I also cannot help but be reminded of the situation in Northern Ireland. Any attempts anyone made to intervene made things  worse, for three centuries of occupation. In fact the US was often accused, with some real justification, of providing essential financial support to the terrorists. It was regarded as an impossible place, as unsolvable a problem as is the Middle East.

I don't think we can simply walk away. We have involved ourselves too deeply. To walk away now would say to the world that when the United States makes agreements we don't really mean them. It would prove that we will maintain our  commitments only so long is convenient for us to give a damn about you. This is a  message we cannot afford to send.  If we cease to be the leader of the world, Russia or China will be happy to take over.

Obviously, much of what we've done in the Middle East has made problems much worse. That's because we've done things which are self-destructive and even stupid. Rather than end all involvement in the Middle East, I suggest we take a more Northern Ireland approach. Peace did not come until both sides were told that they must both make sacrifices and new commitments. The worst thing about the Middle East now is that we always see only one side.  

Americans who support the Palestinians ignore the bitter, even genocidal, hatred of groups like Hamas. Americans who support the Israelis somehow cannot understand the horrors of so many dead Palestinians.  

A more just and fair positioning of American power, with attention paid to both sides as victims and victimizers could make a difference. In any event, it's too late to get out now.

Ike on War

Bobby brought this 1953 speech to my attention:  

Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired signifies, in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed.

This world in arms is not spending money alone. It is spending the sweat of its laborers, the genius of its scientists, the hopes of its children. The cost of one modern heavy bomber is this: a modern brick school in more than 30 cities. It is two electric power plants, each serving a town of 60,000 population. It is two fine, fully equipped hospitals. It is some fifty miles of concrete pavement. We pay for a single fighter with a half-million bushels of wheat. We pay for a single destroyer with new homes that could have housed more than 8,000 people. . . . This is not a way of life at all, in any true sense. Under the cloud of threatening war, it is humanity hanging from a cross of iron.[1][5]

Dwight D. Eisenhower, President of the United States

Former Supreme Commander Allied Expeditionary Force

Let There be Peace on Earth

and let it begin with my birdfeeder.

Two days ago new peace treaty was finally struck. It's not about to make a big difference on the world scene, but it's a rather nice development in this household. A couple of months ago, I broke down and bought a new feeder for the hummingbirds. It didn't take them long to notice it was there and it didn't take much longer than that for one in particular to stake the area out as his territory.

So far, so perfectly normal. The difference was quite surprising to me. For the dozen or so years I've been doing this I've had a lot of hummingbirds out there. Usually they quickly get accustomed to me and I have even felt the breeze from their wings as they've hovered around my hands when I go out to refresh the supply of nectar for them.

Not so with this bird. From the very first he decided that I was some kind of threat. He would buzz me, dive bomb me, hover a few inches in front of my face while making nasty chirping noises...yeah I know,nasty chirping noises? If you don't get it, it is clear that you don't know much about hummingbirds!

To say the least, I was more than a little irritated. After all, if it weren't for me, there wouldn't be a feeder and it wouldn't have any nectar in it even if it were there. But it seems that even hummingbirds can learn. Two days ago he actually flew up and calmly took his drink from the feeder, paying me no attention whatsoever. It seems that even birds can learn . Maybe there is some hope for humanity. Then again, maybe not.