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And If the Mountain Cannot Be Conquered: What Do We Have Left after the 11th of September, February, and March?

By Akio Matsumura

“Well George, we knocked the bastard off.”  These were Sir Edmund Hillary’s first words to a friend after descending from the summit of Mount Everest in 1953. Time Magazine named him and his companion Tenzing Norgay, the first two to summit Mount Everest, two of the most influential people of the 20th century. The idea of conquering pervades Western thought and has given way to human civilization’s incredible achievements. But this insatiable need to surpass has led us into many intractable situations and caused us to lose sight of the larger forces at play. Did they really “knock the bastard off?”

As humans, we are governed by two sets of laws—natural law (often defined or interpreted through spiritual texts) and human (political) law. How we choose to perceive and reconcile their power greatly alters the trajectory of human civilization. The most spectacular consequences of these laws, natural disasters and wars, define our human history.  Pompeii is still being excavated 2000 years after a volcano buried it in ash and disease has wreaked havoc on whole populations. Human-waged wars—from warring ancient Chinese states to World War II—have shaken civilizations as well.

Three recent symbolic dates stand out as civilization-shakers. On September 11, 2001, Al-Qaeda terrorists attacked the United States. On February 11, 2011, Hosni Mubarak stepped down as president of Egypt after several weeks of revolt.  And on March 11, 2011, Japan was devastated by an earthquake and tsunami. The human toll and sacrifices from these events are equally painful.… Continue reading

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A Conversation with Senator Claiborne Pell: Our Perception of Islam’s Peoples and Cultures is America’s 21st Century Challenge

Read in Japanese (日本語).

 

By Chris Cote

“I always try to let the other man have my way.” -Senator Claiborne Pell (RI).

Senator Pell accomplished a great deal in a long life of service to his country. After attending Princeton, Pell departed for World War II and then joined the Foreign Service.  He was elected to the Senate in 1960. He was largely responsible for the Pell Grant (first called the Basic Educational Opportunity Grant), which has helped thousands of low-income Americans attend college, and wrote the laws that created the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities. He spoke out strongly against the Vietnam War. In 1987 he became Chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, which he led until the Senate switched parties in 1995. He had developed Parkinson’s disease and retired from the Senate in 1997, after nearly four decades in office. (To read a charming account of the senator’s life, see his obituary in the New York Times.)

Pell’s deep devotion to service was not confined to the US: his vision, as a statesmen and as an individual, transcended borders. Senator Pell sat on the Steering Committee of the Global Forum conferences in Moscow and in Rio while chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Akio has consistently mentioned him as one of the few US politicians he has known who thought beyond stale, politically dogmatic issues and focused on transcending traditional barriers in the name of greater national and international security.… Continue reading

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Too Good to Be True? The Magnifying Powers of Technology

 

by Chris Cote

From remotely flown Predator drones to deepwater oil drills and from financial derivatives to Twitter, America’s engineers and scientists continue to bring imagination to life. Each invention allows us to get more: security, oil, wealth, information. We are also able to achieve our goals from a distance, with more automation and less personal connectivity. Often, especially in the case of these four—predator drones, deepwater technology, financial derivatives, and social media—the tools are more powerful than we realize. The upsides of these technologies are well known and that is why we use them. But they are only beneficial to a point. Often, the consequences of an accident far outweigh the initial benefits. The problem does not lie in the technology itself, but in our irresponsibility and incapability of using it properly.

Increasingly Distant

Seeing the Afghan men jammed into the flat bed of the pickup, he added, “That truck would make a beautiful target.” At 5:37 a.m., the pilot reported that one of the screeners in Florida had spotted one or more children in the group. “Bull—. Where!?” the camera operator said. “I don’t think they have kids out at this hour.” He demanded that the screeners freeze the video image of the purported child and email it to him. “Why didn’t he say ‘possible’ child?” the pilot said. “Why are they so quick to call kids but not to call a rifle.” The camera operator was dubious too. “I really doubt that children call. Man, I really … hate that,” he said.

… Continue reading
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Push for the Prize: An Indigenous Perspective


A Nobel Prize for Survivors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki: An Indigenous Perspective

 by Steven Newcomb (Shawnee/Lenape) | Indigenous Law Institute

Mr. Akio Matsumura has proposed that a Noble Peace Prize be awarded to the remaining survivors of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki as a reminder and a lesson to the world against the horrors of nuclear war. It is a timely and excellent suggestion.

Those survivors remind us that war and dehumanization are inextricably intertwined; to commit acts of war, by killing, maiming, or incinerating one’s fellow human beings, in the name of flag, country, race, creed, color, or religion, it is necessary to first become detached and desensitized by seeing one’s fellow human beings as “less-than-human.”

The dwindling number of remaining survivors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki come from many countries of the world; not just Japanese people were impacted. The survivors are living testimony to the magnitude of destruction that humans are capable of through processes of dehumanization: scientific and technological ingenuity utilized in the most heinous and deadly manner on a mass scale. Those who perished horribly on that fateful day in 1945 and the living survivors are a reminder of the importance of peace for all living things.

The meaning of the word “peace,” however, is a matter of context and purpose. The historian Tacitus said of the Romans: “They make a desert and call it peace.” The dropping of the atom bombs on the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki left such a desert, a radioactive one.
… Continue reading
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When Money Can’t Buy You Love: Toward a New Inclusivity in the Middle East

By Akio Matsumura

 

Looking back through my last article, “Uprising in Egypt”, it seems that it was written in a different era.  So much has changed in the last month. News from the Arab world has grown and Japan unfortunately joins it in dominating the screens and the papers. We continue to pray for those who are now suffering and have lost loved ones from the tsunami and earthquake in Japan.
I have quickly realized that prediction in North Africa and the Middle East is a fool’s game. It’s uncertain what will happen in Bahrain, Yemen, Syria, Libya, and other countries in the region. Young Arabs are demanding a free future and we onlookers continue to be impressed by their bravery and resilience in the face of strong-fisted government resistance and oppression. These revolutionaries have turned history’s pages—away from the largely negative image the world held of the region—and are scrambling to ensure the next pages include one word: freedom.  And although we don’t yet know what the outcome of these revolutions will be, I have no doubt that their effects will spread.  They will affect the Western world’s younger people in the near future.
There is great hope emanating from the region, but I am deeply saddened that the uprising in Libya has transitioned into a civil war and possible humanitarian catastrophe. The United Nations, led by the United States, has intervened.  On March 17 the United Nations Security Council adopted Resolution 1973:

“Demanding an immediate ceasefire in Libya, including an end to the current attacks against civilians, which it said might constitute “crimes against humanity”, the Security Council this evening imposed a ban on all flights in the country’s airspace — a no-fly zone — and tightened sanctions on the Qadhafi regime and its supporters.

… Continue reading
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Push for the Prize: A Response from Professor Martin Hellman

I am pleased to second Mr. Akio Matsumara’s proposal that the Nobel Peace Prize be awarded to the survivors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Here are some of the reasons:

1. The efforts of the A-bomb survivors (hibakusha) to alert the world to the danger we face from relying on the unproven doctrine of nuclear deterrence is of utmost importance. Most people find it difficult or impossible to comprehend the horror of a nuclear attack, and the hibakusha’s personal experiences are able to overcome that barrier, helping us to conceive the inconceivable.

 

 

Dr. Martin Hellman, Professor Emeritus of Electrical Engineering, Stanford University

 

2. The prize would be a recognition of the role these people have played in improving the prospects for peace. It would not blame either the United States for dropping the bombs or Japan for its own atrocities. Blame is one of the root causes of war and has no place in a Nobel Peace Prize. Efforts, such as those of Mr. Yoshida to bring reconciliation should be highlighted. Mr. Yoshida is a survivor who survived Hiroshima and whose brother died there, yet moved to the Philippines to honor those who died at the hands of the Japanese military.

3. As Mr. Matsumara notes in his proposal, the victims were not just Japanese, but included many nationalities. While it should not matter, this helps illuminate the universal harm wrought by nuclear weapons. To a nuclear weapon, Americans, Japanese, and other nationalities all appear the same — matter to be vaporized, irradiated or otherwise harmed.… Continue reading

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Uprising in Egypt: Why Not Let the Young People Decide Their Own Future?

Read in Japanese (日本語 ).

By Akio Matsumura

 

For 18 riveting days the world watched the extraordinary drama taking place in Tahrir Square in Cairo, Egypt. Tens of thousands of men and women, young and old, were chanting “Mubarak must go,” as they peacefully demonstrated their anger with the government.  Their protests, and those in Tunisia, have started a new period in Egypt and the Arab world. The protesters’ display of courage and persistence in the face of an oppressive regime has now coursed like a raging river through many of the countries in the region.  It is difficult with the protests and government responses in Yemen, Jordan, and Libya.

 

President Obama said “There are very few moments in our lives where we have the privilege to witness history taking place. This is one of those moments. This is one of those times. The people of Egypt have spoken, their voices have been heard, and Egypt will never be the same.”

In our memory, in addition to the uprisings throughout Northern Africa and the Arab Middle East we have seen uprisings in Iran, the Philippines, Tiananmen Square in Beijing, the fall of the Berlin Wall, and movements in Bulgaria and Romania.  Common themes pervade each of these historical events, but why this time and why Egypt?

Egypt is a central force in the political puzzle of the Middle East.  President Mubarak’s departure is already rocking the region, though the events’ longer term geopolitical effects are yet to be seen. 

… Continue reading
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Nation Building at Home: Where is America’s Great Wall?

By Akio Matsumura

President Obama, in his second State of the Union address, said that we are the first nation to be founded for the sake of an idea – the idea that each of us deserves the chance to shape our own destiny.  The president emphasized that we need to work on developing America as a nation.  “Sustaining the American Dream has never been about standing pat. It has required each generation to sacrifice, and struggle, and meet the demands of a new age.”

Indeed, America was founded on an idea, and great ideas inspired and led to the nation we have today. The transcontinental railroad, the Brooklyn Bridge, and the NASA space programs were hallmarks of American leadership and progress.

When my parents visited the US for the first time from Japan in 1979, we toured the East Coast.  They were amazed by the Queensboro Bridge, built before my father was born in 1909; the US Capitol building; and the six lane highways that connected them.  We drove from Niagara Falls to Washington, D.C.—a length of 2,500 miles, or 1 ½ times the length of Japan.  When my father learned that we had not driven into the middle of the US but had stayed only on one coast he asked, “Akio, why did Japan attack such a large country?”  But many of the monuments, bridges, railroads, that amazed my parents were built over 100 years ago, even in the time of the Civil War. America’s leaders inspired by a desire for a Great America—and yes, by extraordinary profits—set their sights far into the future and undertook incredible projects that continue to awe visitors to this day.… Continue reading

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Push for the Prize: A Response from Professor Bill Wickersham

Dear Mr. Matsumura,

I have recently read your very compelling article “The Powerful and Fading Message of Hiroshima and Nagasaki’s Global Survivors:  The Case for a Group Nobel Prize.” As a long time professor of peace studies, and one who has promoted nuclear disarmament for almost 50 years, I think your blog and Nobel Peace Prize campaign are very critical elements for the promotion of a worldwide movement for the abolition of nuclear weapons from Planet Earth.

Bill Wickersham, Adjunct Professor of Peace Studies, University of Missouri

 

Over the years, my sub-specialty in educational psychology and peace studies has been the problem of social and psychological obstacles which hinder personal, group, national and international efforts to mobilize public demand for the elimination of the omnicidal threat.  Unfortunately, those obstacles, including ignorance, denial and apathy, have blocked most such mobilization, with the possible exception of the worldwide ” Nuclear Freeze ” movement of the 1980s, which was aimed more at arms control than truly deep cuts and abolition of nuclear weapons.

Historically, hundreds of fine non-governmental organizations have provided excellent research, information and program/action recommendations aimed at citizen involvement on behalf of nuclear disarmament.  In so doing, the NGOs have provided essential data for the “head” but, in large measure, have failed to truly reach the “heart”  of their audiences in a way that strongly moves people to action.

One major exception to this failing was the project initiated by my former boss, noted editor and peace advocate, the late Norman Cousins, who in 1955, brought 25 young female Japanese A-bomb survivors to the United States for plastic surgery, other medical treatment, and meetings with prominent U.S.… Continue reading

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The Powerful and Fading Message of Hiroshima and Nagasaki’s Global Survivors: The Case for a Group Nobel Peace Prize

By Akio Matsumura

Update: This article is available in Japanese

The survivors of the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki–a group that represents not just Japan but many nations–carry memories invaluable to bridging the gap between violence and peace.  Their stories as the sole witnesses and survivors of nuclear weapons used as an act of war are the most powerful deterrent to future nuclear war.  There is not much time to carry their message forward; the bombings were many decades ago. The group and its message are fading.

Historically, the Nobel Peace Prize has only been awarded to an institution or an individual, precluding groups from winning the Peace Prize. The Nobel Peace Committee should adjust its policies and bring renewed attention to the atrocities of nuclear weapons by awarding the Nobel Peace Prize to Hiroshima and Nagasaki’s global survivors.     

The Grave Issue of Nuclear Security

You wouldn’t have to be a betting man to say that nuclear security has been synonymous with international security for the past seven decades.  Today, other pressing concerns have crowded the top of the agenda, but nuclear security holds its weight among them.  The US Congress just passed the New START agreement to reduce nuclear stockpiles.  The international community is concerned with developments of programs and testing in several countries, including Iran and North Korea.  And the threat of proliferation among terrorists, especially in Pakistan, has the United States and other governments in panic.  Much of the world’s violent conflict directly relates to the perception of nuclear instability in South Asia and the Middle East. … Continue reading