An Open Letter to the People of Iraq:


Salaa'm Aleikum. It is possible you may wonder about the people over here in the United States of America and what they could possibly be thinking, and what they might want from you and for you.

I do not represent any of the people here officially, but I think many of them will have similar feelings to these.

I view the current developments between our nations with great concern, for I fear a great wrongness is being built by our leaders, yours and mine alike.

If it is allowed to go on, there is a great risk that lives will be ruined. Some will be ruined by death, some by loss, some by the guilt of having violated the most basic commandments of Allah not to destroy fellow humans. It is written in the Qu'uran: "You shall not kill any person - for God has made life sacred - except in the course of justice. If one is killed unjustly, then we give his heir authority to enforce justice. Thus, he shall not exceed the limits in avenging the murder, he will be helped."(17:33). In the Christian's book it is also written: "Thou shalt not kill". The Buddha has likewise spoken on the sacredness of life, that it must not be taken.

These things are very much on our minds over here.

Aside from that, our minds are on our children, that we can help them leasrn and grow strong and learn to live happy and productive lives, and be of value to others. Our minds are on our husbands and wives, that we can support them in their lives and keep them well. Our minds are on our parents, that we can bring them satisfaction and spare them pain. Our minds are on our various duties, that we can do them well. We worry about the animals and plants around us. We think about time, and love, and worry about our own health, and whether we are well respected, and whether we deserve to be.

All these are things that are on our minds, and I suppose that to some degree, your own minds travel on similar roads, seeking to reduce pain among those you love and find ways for them to live well.

What do we here in the United States want of you? Seek right actions that will expand peace, not fear; seek to live in the world through wise thought and compassionate speech, not by violence; seek to build, and grow, and sell to others what is valuable to them.

What do we want for you? We wish for you to have a free voice, to speak your own mind openly amongst your own kind and among nations without hindrance. We want, for you, a world where dialogue, commerce, the sharing of ideas, help, and the discovery of common goals can be pursued without fear. We want, for you, a world where you can prosper in harmony, raise your children safely, learn and teach, sing and pray and marry without threat, according to the best wisdom you can find. And from you, we wish only the very same things.

We hold no ill-will toward any man or woman who wants these things, or who wishes them for others. We seek to help make them possible.

However, this desire of ours is not working out well, because of those who promote fear, anger, and stupidity. People in this country promote fear and anger about your country, and people in your country promote fear and anger against ours.

The promotion of fear and anger between peoples is itself stupid, and it brings about stupidity, and it blinds those who could otherwise be thoughtful and intelligent and well-spoken.

We believe that this practice should end, and we would like to believe that you, too, can see plainly that the promotion of fear and hatred is destructive to both those who do it and those who receive it.

So if you will do what you can to put an end to these false pictures of what your fellow-humans are like, we will also.

I cannot speak for my official government, or for yours, of course. But I know I can speak for many. Help us, however you can, from wherever you are. We will do likewise in kind.

Amos