A Message From Ted Snider
Antiwar.com:
The Need for Courageous Media
There are several excellent sources of alternative media. In the course of my research, I make sure I read two or three websites every day. But the one I read first every morning is Antiwar.com.
Being a truly antiwar website that rejects violence requires great courage and honesty. One reason is that it necessitates speaking words that powerful gatekeepers of public opinion dont want spoken. Several of the most senior and respected alternative voices I have spoken to have eulogized the current period as the worst they have experienced for the suppression of the pursuit of truth and honest history and reporting.
The other reason that being a truly antiwar website requires courage and honesty is the self-reflection and self-criticism it sometimes requires. It is not always difficult to condemn your own countrys government for launching a cruel and devastating war. But what happens when another countrys vicious government launches a cruel and devastating war? Can you look honestly at the causes and criticize the government of your own country, and that of its allies for their share of the responsibility for a cruel and devastating war. Analyzing the causes of war is required if we are to prevent future wars. Thats one of the main purposes of an antiwar website.
On March 1, at the beginning of the war in Ukraine, Noam Chomsky condemned Russias invasion of Ukraine as "a major war crime." Thats obvious and easy. But he went on to add this important insight: "Its easy to understand why those suffering from the crime may regard it as an unacceptable indulgence to inquire into why it happened and whether it could have been avoided. Understandable, but mistaken. If we want to respond to the tragedy in ways that will help the victims, and avert still worse catastrophes that loom ahead, it is wise, and necessary, to learn as much as we can about what went wrong and how the course could have been corrected. Heroic gestures may be satisfying. They are not helpful." He then added, "Today that means an effort to understand why this tragedy occurred and what could have been done to avert it, and to apply these lessons to what comes next."
That is the purpose of understanding history: to apply the lessons to avert war in the future. Antiwar.com maintains honesty and courage in the face of powerful critics. And it doesnt censor its writers.
Anitwar.com provides a platform for impressive writers. Unlike many websites and better than most, Antiwar.com offers a diverse and detailed summary of the most important events every day at the top of the page in its news section. Many of these stories are not to be found in the mainstream media and are not included in the mainstream narrative. Their exposure by Antiwar.com informs and alters that narrative.
Below the news, the viewpoints section provides insightful analysis in important articles republished from other sites as well as featuring articles by its own writers, including the respected, reliable, experienced and expert Ray McGovern.
Antiwar is essential. It is a rare honest and courageous voice at a time when stopping the current war and averting the next requires inquiring into "what went wrong and how the course could have been corrected."
Yours in Peace,
Ted Snider
