The Furious Spinner

I am speechless after reading (and then listening to) Harold Pinter's Nobel Prize speech. (You can listen to it here.) He talked about literature, reality, and fiction. Political fiction. He laid bare the horror of the American foreign policy. Astonishing, actually. He said, in part, "The invasion of Iraq was a bandit act, an act of blatant state terrorism, demonstrating absolute contempt for the concept of international law. The invasion was an arbitrary military action inspired by a series of lies upon lies and gross manipulation of the media and therefore of the public; an act intended to consolidate American military and economic control of the Middle East masquerading - as a last resort - all other justifications having failed to justify themselves - as liberation. A formidable assertion of military force responsible for the death and mutilation of thousands and thousands of innocent people.

"We have brought torture, cluster bombs, depleted uranium, innumerable acts of random murder, misery, degradation and death to the Iraqi people and call it 'bringing freedom and democracy to the Middle East'.

"How many people do you have to kill before you qualify to be described as a mass murderer and a war criminal? One hundred thousand? More than enough, I would have thought. Therefore it is just that Bush and Blair be arraigned before the International Criminal Court of Justice."

But that wasn't even the "worst" of it—or the best of it, the entire truth of it. He also talked about the war in Central America and what our government did there—how our government has supported one right-wing government after another, to the detriment of millions of people.

As I read his words, I was taken back to our involvement in the peace movement for Central America in the eighties when we lived on the coast of Oregon. I was in my mid-twenties, naive, ignorant and absolutely shattered to learn what was being done in our name by our government in Central America. I remember having a young man to our home for dinner, someone who was being sheltered by the Sanctuary movement yet who come to talk with our peace group and our community about what was happening to his country, El Salvador. Being with this quiet compassionate man, even for a short time, changed me in a way I still cannot fully articulate. I believed, as I think he believed, if the American people knew what was happening in Central America, they would do something to stop it. But they didn't. Didn't stop it and didn't care. And the atrocities went on and on.

Something happens to your soul when you see horror—even when it is not personally happening to you—and you can do nothing to stop it. After a while, you go insane, turn away (a form of insanity) or you become a witness to it. You listen to the stories. Open your heart. Write your own stories to honor their suffering. Speak out in any way you can. Harold Pinter spoke out last night. His speech should be on the front page of every paper across our country. Not that most people would care. Except maybe to be irritated with him because he is British and criticizing our government. But it should be published everywhere anyway.

As I listened to the speech, I suddenly thought of the German people during World War II who claimed they didn't know what their government was doing and even if they did they could do nothing about it. I never believed that excuse. I never accepted that excuse. Now people around the world wonder how the American people can sit by and let their government continue to do what it has done. Ignorance is not an excuse. Bush's poll numbers are rising again. Congress just renewed the Patriot Act. I thought the Emperor and his tailors were falling out of power, but like Humpty Dumpty, he seems to be putting his regime back together again. We must all do what we can—even if it is to live our lives in revolt of the consumptive and ignorant culture. I don't mean that to sound patronizing or holier-than-thou. I mean it in reality. We can each decide what is our responsibility—what is our ability to respond.

I am grateful for Harold Pinter's speech.

Bravo, Mr. Pinter. We wish you a speedy recovery. 0 comments

0 Comments:

Post a Comment

All photographs and written material copyright © 2003-2008 by Kim Antieau unless otherwise indicated. May not be used without permission.