Peace begins with open discussions between people who believe they're enemies 

"Now, Therefore, I, Harry S. Truman, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim the cessation of hostilities of World War II, effective twelve o'clock noon, December 31, 1946."

I was a little more than 10 months old when President Truman proclaimed an end to war and the beginning of what the world hoped would be peace. But there has been no peace in the world during my lifetime. We even waged a "Cold War."

This is true because people, and groups of people, and the rulers of people are constantly competing for resources, land, influence, and power. Leaders talk peace, but wage war.

In the same way that it takes two people to have an argument, it takes two countries to fight a war. Both decide to struggle against the other. Both have a choice between diplomacy and violence. There are moments when peace may be achieved, and so many times, as in the Ukrainian war, those moments come and go.

There is the seed of violence and war in every human being. There is also the seed of peace. What do we water? What we water is what will grow.

America believes it is guiltless in all the wars since Truman declared peace. We always blame the other country, evil forces, bad players. Isn't it time that we did some real soul searching as a country to understand why we are in a constant state of war somewhere in the world?

War is not a sports event. It is serious violence and destruction. Yet, we treat wars as if they are athletic competitions where we love our team and are desperate for them to win. We cheer our side on whether we are right to battle the other side or not. One need only look at recent wars, which were never declared by Congress, as the constitution demands. None of them were wise. None of them were fair. None of them were won.

Are we destined to keep fighting for decades and centuries to come, or will we blow up our planet in an attempt to defeat our enemies, and in so doing make our planet uninhabitable?

It's up to us.

We can choose to elect leaders who are peacemakers. Women and men who know the true costs of war and are ready to do all they can to make and keep the peace. This would begin by not arming the world so that it is in a constant state of war.

The shout will go out that if we don't do it, someone else will. We've heard that cry before. What about the cry of all the mothers and wives and children who have lost loved ones in stupid, unwinnable wars? Human beings suffer because of the wrong decisions of their rulers.

I say rulers because there are no real democracies left on Earth. Every leader is chosen by the corporations and individuals who can afford to elect them. In America, Citizens United was the nail in the coffin. Now you can't run for office unless you have the funding class on your side. So much for democracy!

It is up to the people to change the system that is rigged against them. Not just in America, but around the world. It begins with open discussion and debate between people who believe they are natural enemies. War will only end when we stop warring with each other, find the common ground that is there in our humanity, and work together to heal the world.

This may sound too optimistic. What is the alternative? Δ

Gale McNeeley writes from Santa Maria. Send a response for publication to [email protected].