Category Archives: Peace and War

War and Foolishness

Posted on September 19, 2021 by Doug Bennett

Message given at Durham Friends Meeting, September 19, 2021 War is what’s on my mind and in my heart today – and foolishness, too.  War and foolishness because war, I believe, is one of the most profound forms of human … Continue reading →

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We Worship on Land That Is a Homeland for the Wabanaki

Posted on January 17, 2021 by Doug Bennett

Message given at Durham Friends Meeting, January 17, 2021 “We worship on land that Is a homeland for the Wabanaki.”  We say those words each Sunday when we gather.  I want to say something more about that today.  I want … Continue reading →

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Abandonment of the Use of Force

Posted on December 17, 2016 by Doug Bennett

December 17, 2016 On August 14, 1941, Churchill and Roosevelt met in Newfoundland and issued The Atlantic Charter,a broad statement of U.S. and British war aims.  War aims? The U.S. was not yet officially at war: the U.S. would not … Continue reading →

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Seymour Chwast for Peace

Posted on October 21, 2016 by Doug Bennett

October 21, 2016 A poster by Seymour Chwast for the  Hague “Appeal for Peace” conference, 1999. Courtesy Pushpin Gallery.

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Unless You Are a Pacifist…

Posted on May 30, 2016 by Doug Bennett

May 30, 2016 “Unless you are a pacifist….”  With these words, E. J. Dionne begins a thoughtful column about Obama and Hiroshima’s Moral Lessons concerning the President’s recent visit to the first site of a nuclear bomb strike seventy-one years ago. … Continue reading →

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War Has Been Given a Bad Name

Posted on December 27, 2015 by Doug Bennett

December 27, 2015 War Has Been Given A Bad Name By Bertold Brecht I am told that the best people have begun saying How, from a moral point of view, the Second World War Fell below the standard of the … Continue reading →

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Yes, We Are Exceptional

Posted on December 5, 2015 by Doug Bennett

December 5, 2015 From Tewksbury Lab. That is, among highly developed countries on a per capita basis, more guns are associated with more gun deaths.  And (notice we are above the regression line) we even manage to ‘outperform’ that relationship: … Continue reading →

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Peace Moves to Center Stage At the Core of Development at the UN

Posted on August 4, 2015 by Doug Bennett

August 4, 2015 As a member of the governing committee that oversees the work of the Quaker United Nations Office in New York (QUNO-NY), I’ve just received the e-mail below from Andrew Tomlinson, QUNO-NY’s Director. He’s reporting on progress at … Continue reading →

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“Pay Any Price:” The Terrible War on Terror

Posted on March 16, 2015 by Doug Bennett

March 16, 2015 “A decade of fear-mongering has brought power and wealth to those who have been the most skillful at hyping the terrorist threat. Fear sells. Fear has convinced the White House and Congress to pour hundreds of billions … Continue reading →

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Did I Serve? I’ve Never Been Under Fire

Posted on February 24, 2015 by Doug Bennett

February 24, 2015 There’s a certain luster in having served in the military. Members of Congress like to claim it, journalists, too, even when these claims don’t turn out to be accurate. Having served in an elite branch of the … Continue reading →

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