Suicide Prevention and Other Kinds of Killing
by Rachel MacNair War It’s well-documented that combat veterans have a shockingly high suicide rate. Much of this comes from being traumatized by war. There are many kinds of trauma. The one I study most is Perpetration-Induced Traumatic Stress, which comes from the act of killing itself. For my dissertation back in 1999, I…
Achieving Diplomatic Breakthroughs in the Past and Future: The “Opening to China” After 50 Years
by John Whitehead China and the United States began a new era in their relationship 50 years ago this month. US President Richard Nixon’s arrival in Beijing, on February 21, 1972, and his subsequent meetings with Chinese leaders Mao Zedong and Zhou Enlai marked a resumption of relations between the two countries after decades of…
Promoting Peace at Home and Abroad: A Challenge for Peace Activists
by John Whitehead Among the many challenges facing peace activists is how widely to spread their peacemaking efforts. Should they devote their energies to opposing wars and other hawkish policies pursued by their own countries? Or should they work against hawkish policies pursued by all countries, everywhere? Each approach has its advantages and disadvantages and,…
Not Your Pawns: A CLE Examination of the Russia-Ukraine Conflict
by Sonja Morin “But if you remember nothing else, please remember this: Chess is just a game. Real people aren’t pieces, and you can’t assign more value to some of them than to others. Not to me, not to anyone. People are not a thing that you can sacrifice. The lesson is that anyone…
January 22, Day of Horror & Hope: Reflections 2022
Rachel MacNair The Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) bans the use, possession, testing, and transfer of nuclear weapons under international law. I had been following its progress for some time, of course. I would get word this nation had ratified and that one had and we were getting close to the…
Seeing War’s Victims: The New York Times Investigation of Civilian Casualties in Iraq and Syria
by John Whitehead The New York Times recently published the results of an in-depth investigation into American bombing and its consequences. The Times articles, which came out in late December 2021, focused on the American bombing campaign in Iraq and Syria against ISIS. Drawing on internal Defense Department documents and extensive interviews, including with those…
Scientific Integrity Problems – Psychology
The following letter (lightly edited) was sent in December, 2021. Membership Department, American Psychological Association (APA) Dear colleagues: I have been a member since 1996, and have (for identification only) served as membership chair and 2013 president of Division 48, peace psychology. I tolerated having occasional disagreements with APA organizational policy because this was my…
December 28: Day of the Massacre of the Innocents
Happy Holidays! For the source on the Massacre of the Holy Innocents, see the Biblical book of Matthew, chapter 2. This echoes Exodus 1:16. Shane Claiborne, Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove and Enuma Okoro Common Prayer: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals, pp. 80-81 (reading for) December 28 After Jesus was born, Matthew’s gospel records that King Herod was…
The Impact of Family Caps on Abortion
by Sarah Terzo Women sometimes choose abortion due to poverty. Therefore, the existence of social programs to help the poor have an impact on the abortion rate, according to numerous studies. Researcher Laura Hussey asked the following question to women who had abortions: Other countries provide a lot of assistance to women and their families…