"An Expensive Lifestyle..." by Rev. Barbara Merritt

Tue Feb 6 10:11:07 CST 2007

M I N I S T E R ‘ S   M E M O

“An Expensive Lifestyle . . .”
My jaw dropped as I listened to a phone-in call on National Public Radio. A
political conservative was explaining why it was completely inappropriate to
compare the Iraq War with Vietnam. He was quite plain spoken. In Vietnam, he
claimed, we had no compelling economic self-interest. In contrast, in Iraq
we are attempting to secure an independent and stable source of oil. He
argued that if Iraq moves into the hands of the Islamic fundamentalists, as
Iran has, then Saudi Arabia and Egypt will also fall, and our entire way of
life will be in peril. Without any sense of irony or ethical qualms, he
calmly stated that as long as our country is dependant on Middle Eastern
oil, we must do whatever is deemed necessary to secure our essential fuels.
According to this logic, whatever the “Empire” needs the Empire is justified
in procuring. And if our booming economy requires oil, then foreign oil is
what we will have. Apparently, no matter the cost in American lives. No
matter the cost in Iraqi lives. No matter what the world thinks of us. No
matter that over 80% of Americans oppose this war. According to this
gentleman, the conflict in Iraq is not about terrorism, or weapons of mass
destruction, or democracy, or human rights. It is about protecting our
economic way of life: cars, big houses, TVs, computers, retirement plans,
cheap gas and appliances that are built for planned obsolescence.
Sometimes we think the news just can’t get any worse in Baghdad. University
students targeted on their way to class. Fathers unable to find work.
Mothers afraid to go to the market to buy food for their children for fear
they will be blown up. Infrastructures collapsing as quickly as they are
rebuilt. New zones in the city where guerilla fighting is on the increase.
Most people I know have not “adjusted” themselves to this war. Every
headline of another massacre by a suicide bomber feels like a punch in the
stomach. Every picture on the six-o’clock news of another brave young
soldier cut down in the prime of life breaks your heart. Every political
platitude causes frustration and anger. And there is no good news coming out
of Iraq. As Robert Gates, the new Secretary of Defense, commented this
weekend, “It’s worse than a civil war.”
So the Americans who are paying attention to the situation in Iraq are
depressed, impatient, unhappy with the war, and feeling powerless. No matter
what satisfactions are going on in our personal lives, there is always some
background chatter of anxiety, frustration and profound disillusionment.
I have no idea what the wisest political and/or military course would be. By
calling, I am a minister, not a political scientist. My guess may not be as
good as yours.
But it seems to me that certain spiritual disciplines are required in times
of great conflict and strife. If you are feeling the international stress
and wondering what on earth you can do to bring peace to the world, consider
the following:
1.              Ask yourself the question, “Who is my neighbor?” Every time
you hear of another human being dying in a market place, the victim of a
stray piece of shrapnel, pay attention. Do not let your heart get hardened.
The core Unitarian Universalist teaching that every child of God has
inherent dignity and worth holds true in Iraq. This is a time of mourning.
“No man is an island, entire of itself...any man's death diminishes me,
because I am involved in mankind; and therefore never send to know for whom
the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.” (John Donne)
2.              Review your priorities. All of us have political agendas
that matter deeply to us personally. Some that come to mind for religious
liberals include the environment, anti-racism, feminist issues, gay rights,
economic justice, health care and election reform. As the death toll
continues to mount, ask yourself, “What is the first order of business for
my elected representatives?”
3.              Wake up! In my humble opinion, Americans can no longer
afford to take our wealth and our great privilege for granted. People in the
global village have noticed that we are taking more than our share. For the
sake of the planet, for the sake of our children and because we take our
neighbors seriously, we have to learn to consume less of our planet’s
energy.
4.              If you don’t want to live in such a violent world, do
whatever you can to lessen the suffering and violence in your own corner of
the earth. Peace isn’t something that just happens to fall out of the sky.
It is a way of life, a commitment, an aspiration, a calling.
Not many of us are given the capacity to stop people from killing one
another. But all of us can live in such a way where peaceful resolutions are
more possible.

                                                Barbara
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