Why Do I Oppose War? (2)

Sima Shakhsari*
shakhsari [at] hotmail.com

WAR DESTROYS LIVES ON BOTH SIDES.

My second entry on this blog was inspired by Jahanshah Javid's photo essay about Bush's speech on Iranian.com. In one of the captions, Jahanshah says that he felt helpless as he watched Bush speak, knowing that a war on Iran is on Bush's agenda. I share Jahanshah's feeling of helplessness. That is how I felt when I watched the presidential (s)elections this year, mainly because I was afraid of Bush's policies towards Iran.
But we can't afford to be paralyzed at this point. We have to speak up so that the drama of public polls does not give us so many lies about people's support for war, be it in Iran or in the U.S. When I saw the poll results on Jahanshah's photo essay (about 75% of Americans supporting the U.S. troops to stay in Iraq), I thought, how come I or anyone I know has never been included in these television "public polls"?! Who do they ask? How large is their sample? Have they asked the families of American youth who are sent to war about this? Soldiers as young as 18, who are recruited mostly from low-income neighborhoods in the U.S., are given the most risky tasks at war and are dying in Iraq. Many young men who join do not have a future to look forward to, except for unemployment. Have they asked the Vietnam war veterans about keeping the troops in Iraq?
Would it not be wiser if Bush allocated a fraction of the money that is spent on war machines to improve our education system, here in the U.S.? Would it not make sense to help the problem of homelessness and poverty in America? But I guess the military industry wouldn't be in business anymore if the U.S. did not create wars, would it? The fact is that war brings death and destruction for both sides. If Bush and his ilk benefit economically and politically from wars in the Middle East, it is at the expense of those who pay for it with their lives on both sides.
Here is a poem I found on the Gold Star Families for Peace website. Many Iranians who have experienced the atrocities of war can relate to this poem...

"A Nation Rocked to Sleep" by Carly

Have you ever heard the sound of a mother screaming for her son?
The torrential rains of a mother's weeping will never be done
They call him a hero, you should be glad that he's one,
but Have you ever heard the sound of a mother screaming for her son?

Have you ever heard the sound of a father holding back his cries?
He must be brave because his boy died for another man's lies
The only grief he allows himself are long, deep sighs
Have you ever heard the sound of a father holding back his cries?

Have you ever heard the sound of taps played at your brother's grave?
They say that he died so that the flag will continue to wave
But I believe he died because they had oil to save
Have you ever heard the sound of taps played at your brother's grave?

Have you ever heard the sound of a nation being rocked to sleep?
The leaders want to keep you numb so the pain won't be so deep
But if we the people let them continue another mother will weep
Have you ever heard the sound of a nation being rocked to sleep?

Sima Shakhsari is a Ph.D. Candidate at Stanford and teaches at SFSU.