The Smell of Truth
by Herschel Sternlieb
King Bushy Tushy was sitting on his throne perusing Sports Illustrated when
he became aware of an unpleasant odor permeating the room.
"Cheney!" he shouted for his Chancellor. "What's that evil stench?"
"Smells like a lie. Must be something left over from King Clinton. Probably
in the walls or the floor joists. I'll call the Royal Exterminator."
Thus it was that Lord DeLay found himself in the throne room with his tool
kit of sprays and poisons.
"I want this evil-smelling lie exterminated immediately," demanded Tushy.
"Sorry, your majesty, but the stench isn't from a lie. It's the truth."
"That's strange," said Tushy. "I always thought the truth smelled
wonderful."
"That all depends on who's doing the smelling," replied DeLay.
"Well, I'm doing the smelling and I can't stand it. Whatever it is, get
rid of it."
"That's not so easy, Sire," said Delay, giving himself an excuse in case he
failed. "You see, the truth isn't like a rat or a cockroach or a termite
that can be eliminated with some well placed poisons. It's impossible to
kill the truth. All you can do is camouflage it with another smell."
"Like what?"
"There are two possibilities: a lie repeated so often that it confuses the
sense of smell; that's known as the Hitler-Goebbels effect; or a compromise
that's part true and part false, which clogs the nostrils entirely; that's
called the Congressional effect."
"Do them both," ordered Bushy Tushy. " I enjoy being King and I want to make my reign as pleasant-smelling as possible."
Nonviolent Peace Force Under Way
based on an article by Nat Hentoff
Extraordinary things are happening that can give us hope that humankind may
not be condemned to fight or to stand by helplessly when violence rages.
In 1999, two men met at the Hague Peace Conference, and began to plan a
nonviolent peace force (NP). NP will consist of a 2,000-member professional
corps, 4,000 reservists, 5,000 volunteers, and a research division, ready
to respond wherever there is conflict around the globe. David Hartsough, a
San Francisco-based civil rights and peace activist, and Mel Duncan, a St.
Paul community organizer, envision a peace force that will not merely end
violence after it has already begun, but will prevent or dampen outbreaks of
violent conflict by creating the space for local groups to resolve their
disputes peacefully.
In three years the project has garnered endorsements from seven Nobel Peace
laureates, established bases in Europe and Asia, and built up a network of
participants and potential volunteers from around the world.
The 100-year history of nonviolent intervention, which began in Mahatma
Gandhi's great campaigns for Indian rights in South Africa, has intensified
in the last 20 years. Gandhi recognized that just as soldiers in the
military need courage, discipline, training, loyalty and restraint, so too
do soldiers in an army of peace.
Examples of non-violent interventions abound nowadays. Witness for Peace
sends observers to conflict areas so they can share information with the
outside world and demonstrate to all the parties involved that the world is
watching.
Peace Brigades International volunteers have successfully accompanied
threatened human rights workers in Central America, East Timor, Sri Lanka
and elsewhere for the last 20 years. The largest peace teams right now are
active in one of the places where the violence is the worst — Colombia.
If the new project succeeds, it will result in a worldwide peace service
capable of intervening in a conflict or incipient conflict more quickly than
the UN peacekeeping division, and in a wholly different way.
The mere presence of internationals changes the atmosphere of a conflict,
often defusing hatred. Entrenched hostility can be short-circuited; third
parties can actually reawaken the humanity in people under arms because they
are voluntarily risking their lives and safety to reflect, through their
concern, the humanity of those who have become mere victims.
Back to Peace Talk Index, Autumn, 2002