President Obama: Staring into the Face of Darkness
I don’t envy presidents. I certainly don’t envy President Obama. He is in a no win situation and I think he knows it. His speech last night was somber, reflecting America’s challenges at home and abroad. The President tried to remain hopeful, but I was not persuaded his performance.
The difficulties I had with President Obama’s speech, and with his presidency in general, were highlighted in his second paragraph:
I know this historic moment comes at a time of great uncertainty for many Americans. We’ve now been through nearly a decade of war. We’ve endured a long and painful recession. And sometimes in the midst of these storms, the future that we’re trying to build for our nation -- a future of lasting peace and long-term prosperity -- may seem beyond our reach.
This is a difficult paragraph for me. I hate to be a pessimist, but “a future of lasting peace” seems beyond our reach precisely because it is beyond our reach. And it’s primarily beyond our reach because of our own policies.
The President claimed that the future is in the hands of Americans. That “the future is ours to shape if we move forward with confidence and commitment.” The problem is that we are committed to finding peace through war. As President Obama ends combat in Iraq, he remains steadfast in his commitment to the war against al-Qaeda. I have no doubt that al-Qaeda continues to make plans to terrorize the West. Defeating al-Qaeda and other terrorist organizations through war may be necessary for any US President, but let’s not kid ourselves. The demonic spirit of terror is like a weed, a weed that once plucked will only continue to return in a matter of days. There is no Round-Up strong enough to defeat the weed of terrorism.
This is simply a matter of understanding human history. I would agree with President Obama that US soldiers have “stared into the darkest of human creations – war” but it is not war that will help the Iraqis see the light of peace. The only thing that will help us see the light of peace is a commitment to building a community that challenges the human darkness of war. Yet, we remain in that darkness. Our politicians continue to lead us into a cycle of violence, promising that this time violence will lead to peace.
“Out of the ashes of war” Obama firmly stated, “a new beginning could be born in this cradle of civilization.” I’m afraid that new beginnings of peace cannot be born from old habits of violence. In his book Violence and the Sacred, René Girard reflected on the human pattern of violence and made this startling statement, “For the first time [modern humans are] confronted with a perfectly straightforward and even scientifically calculable choice between total destruction and the total renunciation of violence” (240).
Maybe it’s time for our politicians to have the courage to lead us into the total renunciation of violence.
Below is the video of President Obama's speech:
