In the 1960’s my big brother had a large poster on the wall in his bedroom with a picture of a machine gun filled with cobwebs. The words read: “WHAT IF THEY GAVE A WAR... AND NOBODY CAME?” I finally think I know how that would work.
In December 1914 Europe was embroiled in WWI, dug into trenches in Flanders. Over a million young men had been killed. It was cold. The enemy was less than a hundred yards away in trenches with guns aimed at them. They watched their friends die. Then, on Christmas eve, in the dark, one side started singing a Christmas carol. The other side followed with another. Next they all sang together. They came out of the trenches and spent Christmas day together, being friends. Some agreed to meet after the war. British soldiers wrote letters home about their German friends. They played soccer between the trenches. They shared their cigarettes, wine and food. They held joint funeral services for their dead. The next day, when the leaders came back and told them to start shooting, they sent messages that they were firing over their heads on purpose. If it were up to the men in the miles and miles of trenches, that would have been the end of WWI, and may have prevented WWII from ever getting started. For one day, “they” became one of “us!”
People don’t like to go to war. Starting a war requires a lot of propaganda to divide people and pit one group against another. We learn in school about the Nazi propaganda machine, but never hear about the British lords who had to put out tons of indoctrination to get their people to fight. Leaders in the United States were also frustrated that Americans didn’t want to get involved, so they started a propaganda campaign of their own to stir-up some anti-Nazi sentiment. My grandmother grew up speaking German, and my mom was a young school girl in San Francisco at the time. In spite of her father being in the Navy, she was called a “Kraut” and other horrible things. She became one of “them.” Americans of Japanese descent were put in prison camps as part of the propaganda machine. They were not “us.”
Good versus Evil
The biblical concept of God is the story of a single family. God is the parent (Father) of the whole human species. All of us are related. We are siblings, from the same family, no matter where we were born on the earth, no matter what language we speak, and no matter what we look like. We are all just people, children of God, who loves each one as much as the other. The whole of Christianity rests on the suffering and death of God, who gave Himself to bring all His children together to be with Him in Heaven. The word "atonement" is "to bring together as one." This defines good. If you don’t believe it, it’s still a great story that helps us to see each other as “one of us.”
The other side is the story of death and destruction. The devil does just the opposite, trying to divide us into factions to fight against one another. The name "Satan" is "accuser." The devil points the finger at others, accusing them to separate them from God -- and each other. There are many such forces in the world to divide us, and put us into groups that make us suspicious of all “outside” groups.
- Rich or poor
- Right wing, or Left wing
- Capitalist or Socialist
- Believer or Atheist
- Black or White
- Criminal or Law-abiding
- Male or Female
- American or Chinese
- Jew or Muslim
- All the “sects” of Christianity
- Vaccinated or Unvaccinated
- Communist or Freedom-fighter
This mentality of “us versus them" can define good and evil.
- Good brings humans together.
- Evil separates people.
That’s how you tell the difference!
People want to feel good. Everyone wants to be good. Even people who are “bad” want to believe they are basically good, and lovable -- loved by others, and loved by God. People want to belong. The worst possible prison torture of humans is isolation. That is how C. S. Lewis describes hell in The Great Divorce. Hell is constantly growing because the people in hell are continually separating themselves from one another.
The Propaganda Machine
The reason to avoid media is divisiveness. To be sensational, the media must separate others and cause fighting. I had a friend who was on a “reality TV” program who told me that behind the scenes they are working hard to induce a fight, to embarrass, or hurt one another -- otherwise it’s not interesting. The rare case of fighting is then seen as “normal.” It’s not normal! Normal is love. Normal is coming together. Normal is helping each other. That’s what we do -- normally. The Christmas parties on Flanders field were a normal human event. The fighting had to be instigated through commands and propaganda from leaders. Both the British and German warlords had to put out a general order: “no fraternizing with the “enemy.”’ Think about that!
Does evil exist? YES! But not in what we think. It’s not the homeless drunk in the street or the guy with a mansion and a Ferrari. It’s not the Democrats or the Republicans. It’s not the drug dealers. It’s not the “Far Right” wacko anti-vaxers, or the communists. Evil is whatever separates humans. It’s those who say “the ____ community.” It’s those who use any terms of “us” and “them.” If you ever hear talk about how one group of people are bad, hateful, hurtful, or just evil -- that talk is evil. It is the definition of evil. Evil is pointing the finger at others and creating a division of “us” versus “them.” It’s putting people into groups, and separating them. Evil simply divides us. It is literally the work of Satan to point out the bad in others.
In 1994 Rwanda had a civil war that left around a million people dead in about 3 months by the hand of their own friends and neighbors. It’s called a “genocide” because one “ethnic group” was trying to completely wipe out another “ethnic group.” However, in reality they had been the same for generations. They shared the land. They intermarried. They were more like social groups, or tribes, than ethnic. This “genocide” really started sixty years earlier in the 1930’s when Belgium had made Rwanda a colony and kept their power by dividing the people into separate groups, issuing identification cards with their “tribe” and treating each tribe differently. It’s the way those who desire power take control -- by separating the people.
We are at the beginning of such a war, perhaps WWIII. The weapons aren’t out yet, but the propaganda is, dividing us into “communities” along political, social, racial, vaccinated, mask-wearing, or religious lines. If we listen to the propaganda about the evil of vaccines we are already in the war. On the other hand if we believe the propaganda that those who are not vaccinated are spreading disease we are also creating evil. We’re fighting the wrong war! The real war is division versus unity. No matter which side of the propaganda you are on, the Germans or the British, it is still evil because it divides and separates people, pitting one group against another. Being “right,” knowing “the truth,” having an inside scoop, or in any way seeing yourself as better than others is the problem. We may have a while to wake up because it takes years of inculcation to incite physical violence. But the war has already started when people take sides.
You might say that I’m pointing the finger at the leaders who run the propaganda machine. However, I can surely say that they are trying as well, they just have a different agenda. It’s hard to be a leader. We need leaders. Society must function with people who take charge and get things done, and there’s always a vacuum of leadership in the world. Those who step forward to lead seek power, they want to lead, which is why the U.S. Constitution was made with “checks and balances” of power. We won’t always have that. I think Jesus told us to obey our leaders, to do what they say but not what they do, so we can live in peace.
How to GHOST a war!
Change is necessary. Two leaders who are excellent examples of how to change things are Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela. Both of these brought irreconcilable factions together peacefully, through love. We can protest peacefully without taking sides, uniting instead of separating. As the people love one another, our leaders must come into line because all their power comes from those they lead. If nobody follows, you can’t be a leader. The power is in the people!
Just like the rulers of the world, none of us knows what we’re doing. We’re all “winging it” here. We do a lot of guessing. We want to do good, but often get it wrong. I have always thought that the problem with being a parent is that as soon as I figured out how to do it right, the children were gone off on their own. As a doctor, I have (a few) people in the world who think I’m “Miracle Max,” and others who think I’m the devil incarnate. So, we’re all different, and we’re all doing the best we can! Consider that others are also doing the best they can.
Winning is unity. Be together. Love everyone you meet as a brother or sister. Don’t give in to the hate-mongers. Don’t be part of the divisiveness. Don’t ever let yourself say “us” and “them.” There is no “gay community.” There are people who happen to be gay, and they are extremely diverse. There is no “black community.” There are people who have ancestors from Africa, but may even be mostly English. My father-in-law’s parents are both Mexican, but he was born in Texas, so he does not identify with the “Mexican-American community.” He is just American. There are no socialists, communists, capitalists, deists, or any form of “--ists.” (We could use some “pacifists”) We are all people with different ideas that change over time. If we take the time to get to know individuals we will see them as people, even if they espouse a different philosophy, or look different from us. We actually like each other when we get to know one another. Just as German and British “enemies” came together on the battlefield to become friends for one amazing Christmas day in 1914.
Recommendations:
- Stop watching the news, including internet that exposes the “truth” that is divisive.
- Don’t point fingers or accuse others (especially our leaders).
- Avoid social media (except to stay in contact with all your people!)
- Don’t take in any “they are bad” messages.
- Love everyone you meet, even if you don’t agree. Find some agreement that you share.
- If you have bad feelings about someone, keep it to yourself, and find something good about that person.
- Read: HUMANKIND by Rutger Bregman and follow the seven rules at the end of the book. ☺
Since everything we try to do to stop it by exposure will fail, the only option we have is to refuse to participate. We will win the war if we don’t allow ourselves to give in to the propaganda that divides us. The power-hungry elite are using the most cleaver tactics to pit us against each other. Families are being divided, as are hospitals, churches and businesses. We can only win by everyone opting out of these arbitrary designations, and act as Edwin Markham intoned in his beautiful verse.
He drew a circle that shut me out-
Heretic, rebel, a thing to flout.
But love and I had the wit to win:
We drew a circle and took him In!”
“They” are “us.” If someone is vaccinated give her a “thumbs-up,” and if not, give him a hug. If someone is wearing a mask, thank them for being obedient to leaders. If someone isn’t wearing a mask, thank them for asserting their independence. I ask others if they would feel more comfortable if I wore a mask, and I put it on, if they want. Get to know individuals, instead of “communities.” Humbly obey, and do what you must to get by, being kind to others. People will see what good you do and be inspired to do the same. Like sprinkling salt on your food, the tiny bits of the flavor of love will spread throughout the world, and nobody will want to go to war. The only way to win this war is by not showing up. We refuse to participate when we love one another.
