Seeking answers in a world of contradiction

CHASING DOWN THE MUSE

“Until we find each other, we are alone.”

-- ADRIENNE RICH

Rhetoric fills the corners of every available journalistic

tableau. Papers, magazines, Web sites and the broadcast channels

bulge with faces, lips wagging, words pouring, but I can make no

sense of them. For every point of view, there is a counter. For every

“fact” there is a refutation. It is difficult to distinguish reality

from propaganda, and the power of the truth is waylaid and buried.

The beast among us is wild and on a rampage. The Ivory Coast is

besieged by a civil war between three separate factions. In

Venezuela, anti-government demonstrations fill the streets with

secret police. Palestinians and Israelis lob missiles at one another

like children with snowballs -- but with deadly results. North Korea

claims its nuclear expansion program is for power; our government

says it’s for weapons. Nuclear facilities turn up in Iran.

I want to know the truth. I want certainty about what is real and

what is not, and in the current escalated climate, that seems less

and less possible. Secrecy reigns. “Intelligence” cannot be shared

without risking the lives of the providers. Behind every position is

the struggle for power and control, and truth becomes the poor

handmaiden, bent to do the deliverer’s bidding. Sanity hides far in

the wings.

Will America invade Iraq? This is the only question that merits

discussion. It is the question that divides the United Nations

Security Council. It is the question that drives peace

demonstrations, phone and e-mail campaigns across the globe. The

answer could irrevocably mark our foreign policy and our status with

trusted allies on foreign and shared shores.

Do they or don’t they? This is not a hair commercial but another

reality check. Are there chemical and biological weapons stashed in

bunkers, in mobile trucks, in neighboring states? Are they ready to

use or to sell to be used against Americans? It seems obvious that

our government believes this to be true. The UN Security Council

concedes that Iraq is not in compliance with the terms of their

disarmament, but no one can accurately assess what is in their

stockpile or under production.

If it is true that weapons of mass destruction can somehow be used

against Americans, does that warrant a full frontal attack upon the

country of Iraq? Do innocent people have to die because one man,

crazed enough to murder and gas his own people, will not relinquish

his weapons?

World sentiment seems to dictate a more prudent path. What human

being could possibly beg for war? No one wins. People, property and

social structures are ripped apart. We’ve proven that to kill a

cancer, one does not need to kill the entire body.

Across the globe citizens gather together, praying and begging for

peaceful solutions. I am haunted by the words of President George

H.W. Bush, the 41st President., who in 1991 stated, “We are now in

sight of a United Nations that performs as envisioned by its

founders.” This was spoken in response to the UN Security Council’s

unanimous resolution to use force to remove Iraq from Kuwait. That

same council now seeks to forge another solution. I am afraid our

43rd Presidential administration does not have the patience and has

lost its trust in the council’s guidance.

Is the administration’s position fear-based or commerce-based? Are

they after oil or safety? Is this ultimately a religious war? Who

REALLY has the answer?

Human beings are frail bodies, built of soft tissue and are easily

destroyed. Part of our journey is to develop evolved methods of

conflict resolution. As children we are taught to dialogue, not throw

stones. As adults, we must remember those lessons and build upon

them.

We have traveled outside our atmosphere and stood men on the moon.

We have landed machines on Mars and we know, from that distant

vantage point, the uniqueness of our home planet. It is time to say,

“President Bush, I do not want to go to war.”

We have the intelligence at our disposal to be brilliant stewards

of life on Earth. We can find another solution.

* CATHARINE COOPER is a local writer, photographer, designer and

member of the Laguna Beach Open Space Committee. She can be reached

at (949) 497-5081 or [email protected].