| Subject: |
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Re: questions for Joe |
| Name: |
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joe jenkins |
| Date Posted: |
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Oct 25, 05 - 11:03 AM |
| Email: |
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info@peacetaxseven.com |
| Message: |
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Hi Anna
Many thanks for your email.
As a teacher I am always delighted to hear that students are thinking about the big issues that impact on their lives. I believe that modern war, even if we are not directly involved, does impact on us all. Firstly, billions of pounds of taxpayers money is poured into war as we have recently seen in Iraq. The money I believe could have been much better spent on peace building {far cheaper as well!} and also on improving the lives of the poor and the sick. Secondly, I wonder what sort of messages we are sending to young people about resolving conflict when we go to war, its a bully-boy mentality to bomb a country, as we did in Iraq, that was already on its knees. Violence is not the way to solve conflict whether it is in the playground, in the workplace or internationally. We need to create a culture of peace not a culture of war and violence.
Can war ever be justified? I personally think that if a fascist regime decided to invade Britain then we have a right to defend ourselves, but having said this I also think that in the 21st century there are ways and means in place {particularly the underfunded United Nations} which if used properly could diffuse areas of conflict. I want to see our politicians and diplomats working flat out to create a stable and peaceful world. The world is bristling with very very dangerous weapons and so modern warfare would be unimaginably devastating and we need to make sure that these awful weapons are never used. Before the Iraq war I thought that there may be wars that might be justified {'just wars'} but my mind has been changed because I no longer trust politicians to make such momentus decisions about peoples' lives and we were lied to by Blair and Bush. At the beginning of the 20th century 9 out of 10 casualties were combatants {soldiers} but today 9 out of 10 casualties are civilians.In a world of nanotechnology, nuclear waepons, satellites, global communication, it seems so stupid to go to war when there are alternatives {see our website 'alternatives to war'}.
Secondly, we are not asking that we don't pay our taxes but that our taxes are spent on preventing rather than promoting war. Conscientious objectors were first given rights not to have to fight in a war - if their conscience forbade them not to - in 1916. This right has been lost and we are demanding that the right be reinstated because given the nature of modern weapons systems we have become financial conscripts - forced against our deepest held beliefs to contribute to the deaths of people we don't even know. We also argue that the right to freedom of conscience is a human right, one that is now enshrined in British law. We want our taxes to go towards creating a peaceful future and believe that violence only leads to more violence.
Who gave me this idea?I went to talk to an old friend of mine, Roger Franklin, who has been sent to prison for refusing to pay for war any more. His courage and determination gave me the strength to withhold my own taxes.
My family have been very supportive. I have a 3 year old son and I am sure that what I am doing is right - I don't want him to grow up in a country that engages in war and violence or a country that sells huge amounts of destructive armaments to anyone and everyone. Like many parents I worry about the future and the sort of world I have brought him into and I want to help create a culture of peace.
I hope this rather rushed email helps but thanks for your interest.
Best wishes
Joe |
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