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Aspects of Peace-Making VOLUME XVI, NO. 24 JUNE 12, 1963 ASPECTS OF PEACE-MAKING THE question of whether the forms of "action" The leading editorial in the April 13 Freedom, developed by the peace movement are "effective" an anarchist weekly published in London, begins: is endlessly argued and no doubt should be. What What can be hoped for as a result of a is not always recognized is that this argument successful—as we assume it will be—sixth annual actually takes place against a background of "Aldermaston" march this Easter, can perhaps be considerable uncertainty concerning what assessed by drawing up a balance sheet of what has "effective" means, or ought to mean. In the terms been achieved by the previous five. of the politics of the past, an effective program is The Freedom writer, his eye fixed upon the one that leads to power. Today, however, it is by anarchist ideal of a free, voluntaristic human no means clear what pacifists would do with community, heads his article: "Aldermaston—a power, supposing they could obtain it. Pacifists Human Success Story but a Political Failure." He "in power" seems very much a contradiction in explains this judgment: terms, yet any action which is a protest against the It seems clear that the ruling classes of the world exercise of power by governmental authority may are not deterred (or disarmed) by good people be taken to imply that the protesters have in mind trampling 53 miles in their thousands, supported by a better way for that power to be used. possibly millions more who will be with them in spirit, even if the few days respite from life's routine The problem is so broad that a specific issue will be spent in other ways. is needed to focus it for examination. For this purpose we borrow from an analysis of the Easter The Freedom writer develops at some length Aldermaston Marches which have taken place in his reasons for calling the march "a human success England every year since 1958. These marches, story," but at the moment we are more concerned which start at Aldermaston, the location of the with his criticisms. Toward the end of the British Atomic Weapons center, and go to discussion, he says: Trafalgar Square in London—a distance of fifty- If CND is to become effective as well as being three miles—are an action project of the British impressive it must either transform itself into a peace group, Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament revolutionary movement or enter the political arena as an organized party. Naturally, we anarchists (CND). CND represents two general would prefer to see the former happen. backgrounds of conviction: one, a basic pacifist rejection of military means to settle international Way back, at the first March in 1958, we quoted from the Manchester Guardian the following conflicts, the other, a strong feeling that it is folly comment: for Britain to attempt to be a nuclear power. The "Sprinkled more thickly than report has given second Aldermaston March (of 1959) generated out are the obstinate ones who insist on thinking. An worldwide attention, demonstrating the existence Oxford undergraduate complained of 'All this guff of of a great groundswell of anti-war feeling in Britain giving a moral lead'. He admits the truth of England. It ended with a mass meeting of some the 'moral stuff,' adding, 'but what we want to know is fifteen thousand people in London. This dramatic what political action we can take to change the protest made it plain that governments can no Government's policy even by a very little—and nobody here has said a thing about that'." longer wholly ignore the tide of public opinion in opposition to war. CND is no nearer to being able to give an answer in 1963 than it was in 1958. It would be churlish to deny that CND has done valuable MANAS Reprint - - LEAD ARTICLE 2 educational work in making a large number of people In a "normal" society, provision is made for aware of the consequences of nuclear war, and the planning of constructive change. Business persuading them to support any constitutional steps to organizations, for example, establish "research and abolish these weapons. Its failure is that after six years it still talks in these terms.... Governments are development" agencies to anticipate future needs not influenced by orderly protests, and disciplined and to plan adaptation to them. For society at marches. The only language they understand and large, we may think of the great universities as take into account is that of revolution, of direct action performing this function. Professors and workers which disrupts the status quo. in research project the future development of the The militant vocabulary of this anarchist country and make recommendations to writer ought not to distract the reader from government, either directly or by generating public considering the problem he sets. For if, indeed, opinion in support of their findings and proposals. the objective of the peace movement—which is In a "normal" society, we find this procedure quite genuine world peace—should be realized, the natural. changes that will in consequence have taken place But we do not have a "normal" society, will be nothing if not revolutionary, regardless of today. We have a society gripped by extreme the words used to describe them. What is at issue, crisis, and there is no scholarly consensus as to here, is whether or not the Aldermaston marches what ought to be done. Those who, in ordinary ought to be spoken of as in any sense a "failure," times, perform the work of research and despite the fact that this movement has not yet development, are today either silenced for their succeeded in altering the defense policy of Great radical opinions, or they have been given Britain. extremely limited tasks to perform—tasks which It must be noted, however, that the CND have little to do with meeting the larger demands leaders discuss their objective in the following of this moment of history. The anxieties stirred by terms: national and world emergency have transformed The renunciation of an independent deterrent, the forum of debate about change and progress and of Britain's part in a NATO deterrent, is into an arena of partisan emotions. To borrow something Britain can do. It is something which a from popular imagery, the Ship of State has rapidly growing proportion of the British people—far, turned into the Car of Juggernaut. far greater than it was when we first marched—think we should do. It is something we, collectively, can This does not mean that "progress" can no will to happen this year. longer take place. It does mean that the progress, This, you might say, is a brave declaration, if we are able to achieve it, will come in but its publication causes critics to speak of the unconventional ways. "failure" of the marches. As the Freedom writer Take the struggle to prevent war. The puts it: conventional institutions of our society have The Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament has shown themselves to be incompetent—even succeeded in expanding in spite of dismal failure so uninterested—in working realistically for peace. far as its objectives are concerned simply because it There are hardly any serious theoretical studies advocates the most popular and uncontroversial of all concerning the possible make-up or requirements causes and because it seeks to achieve its aims by of a peaceful society. In a presumably democratic "respectable" means. society, this can have only one practical result: the It is at this point that we wish to introduce people, who delegated this sort of planning to other considerations, amounting to an expansion their representatives, will have to call back to of what in the Freedom article is called "valuable themselves the power and the responsibility they educational work." delegated, and attempt to perform the functions of Volume XVI, No. 24 MANAS Reprint June 12 1963 3 peace-planning and peace-making themselves—on revolution in basic attitudes about desirable good the theory that if they don't, no one else will, and and tolerable evil. These changes in attitude are the world will be engulfed in an all-destroying being woven into the fabric of daily life and daily war. thinking. They accompany events that shake human beings out of accustomed attitudes and You could argue that, in psychological terms, complacencies. And such changes take place also something like the following is taking place: The when there are new principles of life and human experts, the authorities, the technicians of every relationships for people to attempt to put into sort, have become so deeply involved in the action. Politics may confirm such changes, but traditions of their specialties and the complexities politics cannot bring them about. Politics is too of their techniques, that they are unable to react to theoretical, too "mechanical," too "contractual" to the simple moral compulsions which affect the accomplish this alchemy of the human spirit. common people. They have become subject to a Politics is the rationalization which takes place particular form of cultural lag as well as victims of after the fact. institutional egotism. They cannot relate their professional skills to the popular morality of There will be those, no doubt, who say that rejection of war. Accordingly, the professionals such reflective analysis may be all very well, and keep on insisting that the war-peace equation be even accurate in spots, but the modern world has formulated in terms which they are familiar with. no time for the slow processes of evolving a new And the ordinary people, who are now becoming stance in socio-political relations.
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