Rage Against the War Machine: A Call for a National Strike to End the War

As many others probably are, I’m very much concerned that the current trajectory of the war in Ukraine is leading us toward thermo nuclear war. Global nuclear holocaust followed by nuclear winter is a terrifying prospect for the future of humanity, threatening its very existence, future generations, and the existence of all life on this planet.  And the thing is, even though I know that this prospect is increasingly becoming the reality, I just don’t want to accept it. Yet, at the same time, I feel so paralyzed, so helpless to do anything about it. Who am I? I’m just one person. What can I do?

Well, I’m not just one person, am I? So, what are “we” going to do about it? How can “we” stop this war machine from its destructive path? Once the automated systems are initiated, it’s almost impossible to stop the sequences that will follow. It will all happen very quickly. In around half an hour or so, much of the world will be completely destroyed. It has been estimated, that, if any, only 1% of humanity will survive, but then there’s the follow up of nuclear winter, which will last for a year afterwards. I don’t think I need to go on to describe the horrors of that, but we need to understand the incredibly foolish risk these madmen are taking now with their war machine. It’s not a game! These scoundrels and devils, who are of a similar mentality as that of Nazis, are risking our lives and the lives of our children and their children, our friends and families, future generations, and all life on the planet. And for what? So that the filthy rich war pigs of the MIC can get filthier, more corrupt, and fantastically wealthy?  So, why are “we” the people even in this game? How does this benefit the American people? It doesn’t! None of it does!

So, I ask you, what are WE going to about it? How can WE stop this madness before it erupts into the point of no return? I support the rally to “Rage Against the War Machine” protest that’s planned for Feb. 19 in Washington D. C., and if lived anywhere near D.C., I would enthusiastically participate. However, I don’t, and I know that many others don’t either. I’m also concerned how effective this rally will be. Will it actually be able to reach out to the majority of Americans to be able to make a difference in time to stop the war? We know from experience that the corporate-state media will probably not even mention it. I mean, I definitely think it’s worth a try, and like I said, I’d attend if I could.

However, I’m also thinking that perhaps there is another strategy that might be even more effective, one that every American could participate in. You don’t have to go out in the streets to protest, no, not at all. You can just do nothing. That’s right, all you have to do is to stop working until this madness stops. Let’s call it a National Strike to End the War, that is, for every American to stop working from that day on until the war machine backs down. We have to demand that the supply of weapons shipped to Ukraine stop immediately and that all NATO troops stand down and withdraw, as a precondition for negotiation with the Russians.

Think of it. During the covid crisis, they shut down the economy. “They” shut it down, not “we the people,” THEY did. Well, now it’s our turn. WE can do the same thing, except this time, it’s from the bottom up, on our terms, for the mother of all causes, for the sake of all humanity, all life on this planet, for our children and their children, and for the lives of future generations. What cause is more important than that??? When do “WE the people” get a chance have a say in all this? When do WE get to have a say in something that concerns our very lives, the lives of our friends and family, the lives of our children and grandchildren, the lives of future generations, and all life on this planet? Don’t you think that WE the people should have a say in something that’s so critically important as that?

However, they won’t listen to us unless WE put our foot down and hurt them in a place that they know best. So, shut the whole economy down! Make the economy scream! That’s the language they understand. Declare a day that all Americans will just not show up for work and will refuse to work until the war ends. What’s a few days of work compared to our lives and the lives of our children, and the future of humanity? If we all die in a nuclear holocaust, what difference will that “job” make anyway? So, WE have nothing to lose, yet WE have everything to lose if WE don’t stop this war machine. WE need to organize this fast. WE don’t have a whole lot of time left.

WE must get serious about stopping this fu*king war! Just stop it! Drop everything and stop the war machine! And all you have to do is do nothing. Just don’t show up at work! That’s the only thing that will that will get their attention, the only way that they will get the message. Only then will they take us seriously. WE don’t want to be any part of your war machine! WE won’t support the economy that funds it! WE the people have power! WE will make the economy scream! WE the people have spoken! WE will not put up with this abuse any longer!

Dennis Morgan is a Professor at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, South Korea.