"Where Have All the Flowers Gone" is a folk song written by Unitarian Pete Seeger in 1955, inspired by his reflections on the cycle of war, loss, and longing for peace. The lyrics are inspired by an old Cossack poem and the melody was adapted from an old Irish folk song. He wrote the first three verses at that time and the last three were added by Joe Hickerson in 1960. This was a difficult time for Pete professionally. Pete was not shy about his devotion to the labor movement, social justice, and peace. This was the McCarthy era and he and many other artists and performers on the left were blacklisted and banned. (We are seeing this again folks.) Pete did not budge but continued to sing at folk festivals and more. And we can take a lot of inspiration from him, his persistence, and his music.
Pete’s intention for this song was to highlight the senselessness of war and the longing for peace. It was recorded by the Kingston Trio and others like Peter, Paul, and Mary in the 60’s and gained wide attention during the Vietnam war as an anthem of the anti-war movement. Some describe this as a “timeless song.” I am sad that is so.
I would have hoped that by 2025, we would have learned how to resolve disputes without violence. But each day on the news we hear how talks have failed, and wars continue in Gaza and Ukraine. These are just the two in the news, though. According to the Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights (aka – Geneva Academy) which monitors armed conflicts, “today there are more than 110. Some of these conflicts make the headlines, others do not. Some of them started recently, while others have lasted for more than 50 years.” (https://geneva-academy.ch/galleries/today-s-armed-conflicts)
Now it is true that the number of combatants killed in these conflicts has declined over time with the use of better medical equipment and procedures and different techniques for destroying targets that do not involve boots on the ground. But those numbers do not include the “collateral damage” that has increased with these new techniques – with many civilians, including children being sacrificed at the altar of war.
Is World Peace Possible? Many thought so after the Great War – now referred to as World War I. That was supposed to be the war to end all wars. The Kellogg-Briand Pact was an agreement to outlaw war signed on August 27, 1928. Sometimes called the Pact of Paris for the city in which it was signed. Signatories included France, the United States, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, India, Belgium, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Germany, Italy and Japan. Later, an additional forty-seven nations followed suit, so the pact was eventually signed by most of the established nations in the world. There was no way to really enforce it though.
Again, I ask, is peace possible? During some of the marches I’ve participated in, the marchers chanted, “No Justice, no peace.” Now I attempted to frame that idea to mean that we would continue to make noise and “good trouble” till justice was done. But some say, no – there are times to fight physically, with weapons if necessary. Can we not grow beyond that?
This song – and this sermon – is a lamentation. But I don’t want to just be sad about the ongoing wars and armed conflicts throughout history. I want to understand why we don’t seem to be able to move beyond this destructive, deadly, strategy. In my efforts to understand – where have all the flowers gone – I read several articles and excerpts from studies, including a Psychology Today article by Allen Lickerman.
Lickerman (I like saying that) is a medical doctor and practicing Buddhist, and an author who has studied this concern. The title of his article inspired me and gave me some hope. It’s called: “Just Because Something is Hard, Doesn’t Mean it’s Impossible.”
Now Lickerman does indicate that some wars could be justified. He says:
“In a world in which tyranny continues to exist, war may in fact sometimes be justified. In the same way it's necessary to fight to defend oneself when attacked, so too it's sometimes necessary to go to war to put down injustice, or even the possibility of injustice when its likelihood is great enough. (Then these words are in bold) - Rarely, however, is this given as a primary reason. Even democracies seem to be roused to war only by self-interest.”
Countries have gone to war for various reasons throughout history, and these reasons often stem from a combination of political, economic, social, and cultural factors.
I searched for some meta- analyses of reasons and found similar categorizations – though the orders changed somewhat. Nevertheless, those at or near the top – were the same for all – and those at or near the bottom were similar as well. Of course, most causes of wars are complex – pulling from more than one of these reasons for conflict. I’ve combined a couple of these where it made sense and will share some of them with you. The number one reason is the same for all these analyses.
· Territorial Disputes: Leaders throughout history seemed to measure their success by how much space they can take up on the map. Russia is still number 1 in this regard – and perhaps that is why Trump jokes about (maybe) acquiring Canada and Greenland. And even Russia is not satisfied and wants more.
· Resource Scarcity and Economic Gain: Access to natural resources like oil, minerals, fertile land, and waterways has often been a major driver of war. We saw a lot of this during the expansion of colonies throughout the world – but even now, this appears to be a factor.
· Nationalism and Patriotism: Strong feelings of pride in one’s nation—has played a central role in many conflicts. Historical examples may be The American Revolution – or the Balkan Wars – but we see it today perhaps in Ukraine not wanting to give in to Russia.
· Religious, Ethnic, Cultural and Ideological Differences: Conflicts driven by religion, ethnicity, culture, ideology, or belief systems are common. The Crusades and the Thirty Years' War were, of course, religiously motivated, as were some of the middle eastern wars. The war in Gaza – though it could be proclaimed as a territorial dispute, may have underpinnings related to this category.
· Defence and Protection: Countries may go to war to defend themselves from external threats. This includes wars of self-defence or to protect allies. World War II is a prime example of countries like Britain and France declaring war to defend Poland after Nazi Germany's invasion.
· Civil Wars and Internal Conflicts: Internal struggles within a country, such as civil wars or revolutions, can also lead to war. These wars often arise from ethnic, social, or political divisions. The American Civil War and the Russian Revolution are notable examples of this type of conflict.
· Revenge or Retribution: Past grievances, territorial losses, or perceived injustices can lead to wars of revenge. For instance, World War II can be seen as partially motivated by a desire for retribution following the outcomes of World War I.
· Security Dilemmas and Pre-emptive Strikes: In some cases, countries go to war because they perceive an imminent threat and want to strike first. This is known as a security dilemma, where one country’s efforts to increase its security lead another to feel threatened, escalating into war. Russia uses the threat of NATO as a reason for going to war with Ukraine before Ukraine can get more aligned with the West.
· Humanitarian Reasons (Usually at or near the bottom for all analyses): Wars have occasionally been waged with the justification of protecting human rights or stopping atrocities, such as during the Rwandan Genocide or Kosovo War.
Each war is a complex interplay of many factors, and motivations often overlap. The causes of war have evolved over time, but many of the fundamental reasons remain the same.
Now back to Likerman and his thoughts. He shrinks all of this simplistically to three words: greed, anger, and stupidity. And he contends that the only way to peace is by more and more individuals becoming experts at living. What is that? “An expert at living isn't a person who never experiences greed, anger, or stupidity but rather one who remains in firm control of those negative parts (which can never be entirely eliminated), who's able to surmount his or her darkest negativity, and displays a peerless ability to resolve conflict peacefully.”
Lickerman further explains his theory: "What generates this expert ability to resolve conflict? Wisdom and joy. Wise people are happy people, and happy people are wise. If enough people in the world's population became happy and wise, violence would be used far less often to solve conflict. If this pool of experts at living became large enough, we'd start seeing some of our leaders being picked from among them. And if enough leaders were experts at living, war, too, would be used far less often to solve conflict and further the interests of nations.”
Okay – so with that thinking, we have to have enough wise and happy people in this world – to attain peace - and that’s a big task. Where do we start. Well, I guess here is where we sing – “Let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me.”
Now Lickerman is not that naïve. He doesn’t expect that we can achieve world peace in his lifetime – and certainly not in mine. Here’s a quote where he attempts to tell us what we can do: “As Gandhi famously said, ‘by becoming the change we wish to see.’ Strive to become an expert at living. Be good to those around you in concrete ways. Create an island of peace in your own life. If you do, it will spread. If enough of us do this, our islands will meet, ceasing to be islands and becoming whole continents. World peace exists literally in the actions each one of us takes in our own lives.”
Lickerman knows that everyone will not be easily enticed to become experts at living. What will draw others who are obsessed with greed and more. Now this response really does sound kind of like Pollyanna – but bear with me. Lickerman thinks the draw is happiness. People think they want more money and tax cuts, perhaps – but they really want to be happy – and they are not getting there.
Another quote: “We must convince them to follow our lead by becoming so happy ourselves—so ridiculously, genuinely happy—that they decide on their own they want to be like us, that they want what we have. And then we have to show them how to get it. Good ideas are our weapons. When people come to deeply believe in notions that promote peace, peace will follow like a shadow follows the body.”
Now this is a very long-term goal of course. But as John Lennon wrote: “You may say I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one. I hope someday you’ll join us. And the world we’ll be as one.”
May it be so!