About four years ago, I took part in a trip
to Russia from the United States, as part of a group
organized by Sharon Tennison. She had
facilitated a huge number of trips and exchanges decades
ago, bringing Russians to the U.S. and people from the
U.S. to Russia, an effort that had influenced
international relations for the better, as described in
her book The Power of Impossible
Ideas. Sharon had relaunched the project
due to the escalating tensions.
I met Russians from a variety of backgrounds, some of
whom now protest Russia's warmaking and some of whom
cheer for it. Sharon, who has personally known Vladimir
Putin, as well as many other high-profile Russians,
opposes Russia's warmaking, without losing sight of the
missteps -- including by the United States and NATO --
that predictably (and it was predicted) got us to this
point.
I don't see exactly eye-to-eye with Sharon (or
perhaps anyone else) on the current war, but on one
thing I agree with many people: talking
helps. Knowing each other helps. Storming out
of meetings, evicting diplomats, generalizing about
whole populations, and accusing others of being
incapable of rational discourse does not help. Talking
helps tremendously. Just how much might surprise
almost everyone.
In April 2022, World BEYOND War will be
holding a weekly discussion each of four weeks of
The Power of Impossible Ideas: Ordinary Citizens'
Extraordinary Efforts to Avert International Crises
with the author Sharon Tennison as part of a
small group WBW book club limited to 18 participants.
We'll mail you the book or, if you prefer, email you the
PDF. We'll let you know which parts of the book will be
discussed each week along with the Zoom details to
access the discussions.
Learn
more and register here.
When: For one hour on four
Saturdays, April 2, 9, 16, and 23, 2022. The time is 12
p.m. Pacific, 3 p.m. Eastern, 8 p.m. in London, 9 p.m.
Central European, 7 a.m. the next day in Auckland:
Where: Zoom
(details to be shared upon registration)
This is a small group series with limited
space of up to 18 people. Sign
up to reserve your spot and allow for enough time to
receive the book. We look forward to
reading and discussing this important book with you!
About the Book: Sharon Tennison
and the Center for Citizen Initiatives proudly introduce
the story of our three decades of work in Russia. Read
the history of Russia’s last three turbulent decades as
observed by naive American citizens who traveled there
in 1983 searching for keys to end the nuclear arms race.
They could have never guessed they would be central to
many of the totally unexpected changes to come.
Experience their skirmishes with the CIA, FBI, KGB and
FSB -- being arrested and put in jail.
Beyond all the drama exists the story of how they
slowly and methodically created unique programs to help
Russian citizens survive the dissolution of the USSR,
begin recreating themselves after the fall of Communism,
and weather the storms of recurring financial crises.
Impossible ideas moves the Americans rapidly forward
from obscurity to finding themselves inside the Kremlin,
the White House, and the U.S. Congress. A fascinating
read, the book is a testament to the power of ordinary
citizens to act on their most outlandish ideas and watch
them become a reality; even in an international quagmire
as deeply entrenched as was the US-USSR
relationship.
Learn
more and reserve your spot.
Peace,
David Swanson
Executive Director, World BEYOND
War
World
BEYOND War is a global network of volunteers, chapters,
and affiliated organizations advocating for the
abolition of the institution of war.
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