Voices of peace.

• Author: Rothschild, Matthew
• Position: Editor's Note - Warb on terrorism, United States - Brief Article - Editorial

On the day after Christmas, George W. Bush was so taken by the spirit of the holidays he declared that 2002 "will be a war year." No "Peace on Earth" for him.

And so he and Donald Rumsfeld ponder which country to attack next, with all the insouciance of a wealthy couple deciding which fancy restaurant to go to on Saturday night. No other country in the world has the power or the chutzpah to spin the globe and point. As unrestrained as the old British Empire, the United States can go wherever it wants whenever it wants, regardless of international law. People in Somalia, the Sudan, Yemen, the Philippines, Indonesia, and Iraq all must be holding their breaths to see where Bush and Rumsfeld make their reservations.

This year may also prove to be a year of war in Israel and Palestine, and in India and Pakistan. Rarely have these regional conflicts looked so ominous.

At such a time, it's all the more important to listen to voices of peace. And this month, we bring you several.

I was especially taken by Hanan Ashrawi's courageous act of introspection. A Palestinian leader I have long admired, Ashrawi is not afraid in this cover article to ask the question that demands to be asked: Why have the Palestinians followed the Israelis down the dead end of violence and terror? It is the strongest and most morally compelling article on the subject I've read in a long, long time.

I'm grateful to my colleague Amitabh Pal for introducing me to a pacifist I'd never even heard of before, Badshah Khan, the "Frontier Gandhi." Khan, who was born in what is now Pakistan, founded a powerful nonviolent movement for social justice there, Amit tells us. What a terrifying shame it is today that India and Pakistan, home to two great pacifists, are squaring off with nuclear weapons, Amit notes.

Another colleague, Elizabeth A...