war policy
On Praying for the Military
The following is a letter CLN board member Julia Smucker addressed to her church at the request of one of her pastors after raising these concerns in person. As a nonsectarian organization, we welcome perspectives from various faiths, as well as secular ones, that affirm consistent-life principles. Since attending my current church, I…
Peace & Life Referendums
by Rachel MacNair A reminder: The Consistent Life Network doesn’t necessarily endorse everything said in its blog, since we encourage individual writers to express a variety of views. This is especially so when analyzing elections. Because potential referendums get added and subtracted, this post will be updated now and then. The original post is September…
Explaining Belligerency
by Rachel MacNair Why did U.S. slaveholders insist on expanding slavery into new territories, despite existing political wisdom that keeping the practice out of places where it might encounter stronger opposition would be more practical? Why are there advocates for war, or for abortion and euthanasia, who can’t stand the idea of conscientious objection, even…
My Personal Journey on Veganism, War, and Abortion
by Frank Lane I’ve been an ethical vegan for about 28 years and a vegetarian for 16 years before that. My passionate conviction came from a profound sense of the sacredness and wonder of my existence, the natural world, especially the unborn, animals, and trees. I was a registered conscientious objector to war and…
Finding Common Ground on and Learning from World War II
by John Whitehead Writing on this blog, Consistent Life Vice President Rachel MacNair recently examined several moral issues related to the Second World War and how we interpret and remember that war today (see The Darkest Hour—“Glorifying” War?). An observation in that piece that struck me was that when a nonviolence advocate discusses war with…
The Darkest Hour – “Glorifying” War?
by Rachel MacNair All posts represent only the opinion of their authors. We pride ourselves on presenting a diversity of views, and opinions about movies are something people will have wide differences on. This is my own opinion – and only my current opinion at that, easily changed. I recently wrote in Peace…
Using Empathy during a New Cold War
by John Whitehead An American contemplating the hostile state of current U.S.-Russian relations might well be pessimistic. Russia, this American observer might conclude, is an implacably hostile enemy whose actions reflect Russian President Vladimir Putin’s ambition to act aggressively abroad while suppressing dissent at home. From this perspective, America has no choice but to wage…
Making the Case for Peace to Conservatives
by John Whitehead Editor’s Note: This is the third in the series of blog posts based on presentations at our 30th Anniversary conference, held August 4-6, 2017. In the United States, political conservatives tend to support American wars and military interventions abroad and generally favor a hawkish foreign policy. People dedicated to peace and alternatives…
War Causes Abortion
by Rachel MacNair and Catherine Coyle This is a condensed version of Chapter 4 in Peace Psychology Perspectives on Abortion. References are in APA style – authors in parentheses, full citation at the bottom. War as an Instrument of Unchosen Abortion In an article entitled “Abortion and War,” Emanuel Charles McCarthy (2011) points out what…
Breaking Stereotypes in Fearful Times
by John Whitehead Several incidents of terrorism that occurred in the United Kingdom this spring—the suicide bombing of a concert in Manchester, two attacks in London by men using trucks and knives—have understandably received much attention and provoked much horror and outrage. Along with such appropriate responses as sympathy for the victims and their families…