The Iraq war is a tragedy that is increasingly vivid to everyone. The wasted human life and massive scale of destruction being waged by the US government and allied forces is horrifying. This war is being perpetuated by the interests of the State and business, which benefit directly from war. Iraq is important to them for a number of reasons. It is located strategically in a geographical and military center of power in the middle east. The natural resources of Iraq compound this importance, despite whatever short term costs a war might have on oil production. The costs of the war to the State are great, both in terms of the economic costs and the loss of support within and around the world. Still the conquest of power and wealth fuel their lust. This war is senseless and unjust, but it is unfortunately neither unique nor an isolated incident. The rise of democratic governments has not halted the march of war. Wars have increased in frequency, deaths, and atrocities since the twin-birth of capitalism and powerful centralized governments. It does not matter where you fall on the political spectrum; democrats, liberals, communists, and socialists all have waged brutal wars under their reigns. The only country to have used nuclear weapons in war was a democratic one (USA). Perhaps the worst war in history, World War I, had the full support of Europe's socialist parties, and communist governments waged war on neighboring reigns to expand their control.
This is because the State is driven towards war by the jockeying for power and wealth. War is profitable. That lust for profit drives businesses, and the governments they control, to press for wars, whether at home or in far off lands. The State tries to expand its power through the conquest of other nations, and the suppression of perceived threats to its pursuit of power. Governments use war to silence dissatisfaction through fear mongering, breaking apart communities, and cracking down on dissent. At its worst war sets examples people everywhere that if you try to build a freer and more just life for yourself, you and the place you live in will be senselessly tortured and destroyed.
Despite what we are told everyday, we are not powerless to stop this war and every war. It has not been voting, lobbying, or begging the powerful that has stopped wars. Our power is weakest in Washington. We do have the ability to stop the war, but with our work, our money, and our consent. Our government can't wage a war that we refuse to participate in, refuse to fund, and refuse to work for. Our task is to organize in our workplaces and communities to undermine their ability to wage war. We can do this through refusing to produce and circulate commodities that will be used in war. We can organize general strikes against the war to paralyze the financial machinery that is necessary to their war machine. Organizing together we can lead counter recruitment efforts in schools, with parents, and at community events. Those who refuse to fight in the military need our help, and we can make it easier for soldiers to make that choice. We can raise awareness of the casualties of the war and discontent through grassroots media.
In order to stop unjust wars once and for all, we need to build a movement that aims at getting rid of the root causes of war, an economy based on profit and the centralized power of governments. We can do this by acting directly as a collective democratic movement at our workplaces and communities. We can build directly democratic bodies that can fight these forces, and build a world of our own choosing. To effectively struggle we need to build social organizations founded on equality, freedom, and mutual aid. This is a road we will make by walking it.
