I wake up disturbed in the middle of night. A glass of cold milk is most soothing, but the mind could not be comforted.
Wars in Gaza and Ukraine are incessant sagas of human suffering, with numbers rising every hour. In a two-year period in Ukraine, there were more than 10,000 civilians dead, 18,500 injured and 5.1 million displaced. In two months since Oct. 7 in Gaza, more than 16,000 noncombatants have died on both sides and more than 2 million displaced.
For the majority, it is better to try to live a normal life like sheep, close the eyes, ears and minds, continue life as usual and hide in our cocoons. But we cannot turn off the pervasive cries of suffering.
Despite doom and gloom, the optimists keep working for the world welfare in arts, science, journalism and the environment. However, for the right to prevail, the silent majority has to stand up to reason to stop this madness.
Complacency only protracts misery; to succeed we the people have to rise, be counted and put a stop to the business of war and oppression.
Birendra S. Huja
Waialae Iki
EXPRESS YOURSELF
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