War Doesn't Make Friends

On August 21 I received a copy of a letter by my friend Brad Lyttle to NBC protesting the television show, “Stars Earn Stripes”. I was so impressed with Brad's writing and reasoning, that I am copying the entire letter here.

Bradford Lyttle

(address held)

Email: blyttle@igc.org

August 21, 2012

Steve Burke, Chief Executive Officer

NBC
30 Rockefeller Plaza,
New York City, NY

Dear Mr. Burke,

In regard to your television show, “Stars Earn Stripes,” I hope that you will cancel it. The show expresses a complete faith in military force as the way to obtain security for the United States, and avoid catastrophes like nuclear war, or a repeat of 9/11. In doing so, it it does a disservice to the American people. No matter how well military force seems to have served us in the past, the scientific fact is that it cannot prevent nuclear war, and it cannot keep this country from being attacked by determined people who wish to harm us.

The government tries to create the impression that nuclear deterrence will prevent nuclear war forever. The scientific fact is that it insures that nuclear war will come, and can come at any time. This is because the huge arsenals of nuclear missiles that have been created always generate the possibility of war, and mathematical probability theory then tells us that this situation makes the probability of nuclear war approach certainty. If the present situation with nuclear weapons continues, the United States is doomed. Nuclear war can only be prevented by the abolition of nuclear weapons.

But the government has our nuclear arsenal under control, you might say.

Does it? A few days ago, an 82-year-old nun, and two middle-aged Catholic friends, passed through three security fences at Y-12, the place in Tennessee where enriched uranium for bombs and power plants is stored, and reached the walls of the storage building, where they prayed for peace. Are the contents of Y-12 secure? The Catholic protestors posed no physical threat. What about people who want to hurt us?

 Nor can peace and security be created by the type of war now being waged in Afghanistan. Drone attacks and night raids cannot end the risk of attacks against us. They only make those who hate us hate us more, and become more determined to revenge themselves against us. These people constantly devise new ways to hurt us, as they are doing now by implanting suicide fighters in the Afghan army who conduct surprise attacks against our forces. We bomb targets in Pakistan with drones.

Pakistan has nuclear weapons. It is just a matter of time until some Pakistani who hates us gains control of a nuclear weapon and attacks one of our cities.

Peace is created by policies that help people, not hurt them, by policies that diminish hatred, not increase it. We should be working to bring all international disputes before world courts, where those accused can have “their day in court,” with competent legal representation. Such an approach is recognized as fair and just by people throughout the world, and does not generate intense hatreds.

Stars Earn Stripes glorifies warriors such as Navy Seals and snipers.

These warriors may be extremely competent in their destructive skills, and brave in their willingness to use them in the belief that they are serving this country, but the fact is that the killing that they do so well is in direct conflict with the moral principles of Christianity, and cannot help but generate emotional conflicts in the warriors that will scar them for life. Even if you believe that it may be necessary to train some young people to efficiently kill, you certainly must realize that this is not the best way to try to resolve conflicts, and, in reality, no one should be asked to do such terrible things to other people.

You have just done a fine job in reporting the Olympics. In the Olympics, young men and women compete fiercely for honors and trophies.

But they don’t try to kill each other. They compete within a set of rules, and certain tactics are forbidden. If, in just one sport, a competitor tried to win by killing his opponent, the Olympics would be severely marred. If even a small number tried to kill their opponents, the Olympics would end immediately. Since the games are conducted within rules that rule out killing, they generate mutual respect and friendships, rather than hatreds. It is inspiring to see young people enter the stadium in contingents carrying the flags of their respective nations, and, after two weeks of intense competition, leave mingled together, in obvious mutual respect, and sometimes much deeper friendship. That is the kind of conflict management that NBC should be encouraging, not the competition of war, which does not generate mutual respect and friendship. Did we respect the Nazis after World War II?

Were we friends with the generals of the imperial Japanese army?

I would like to see NBC promoting entertainment that suggests that people can resolve their conflicts without violence. Such a policy would be a solid contribution to the security, integrity, and cohesiveness of our society. Television shows that imply the permanence and inevitability of war are not what we need.

 

Sincerely,

 

Bradford Lyttle