Peace Activists and Relevancy
Congratulations on your extensive article on the peace movement in Orange County (Jan. 25). The headline, “Doves in a Hawk’s Nest,” however literary, inadvertently continues the false dichotomy that peace activists (and most other socially responsible people) have fought to dispel for ages, i.e., that we Americans are neatly and easily divided into pairs such as hawk-dove, conservative-liberal, strong defense-pacifist, or other such superficial categories.
Rep. Robert K. Dornan (R-Garden Grove) is quoted in the article as describing the peace movements as “irrelevant in this country.” Surely the overwhelming victories of Proposition 12 and similar freeze measures throughout the country reflect the votes of millions who voted for Ronald Reagan at least twice. Are voters really willing to be classified as “irrelevant?”
The peace movement has helped to erode the tendency we all have to create categories that perpetuate the kind of thinking that has led us to a situation in which there are more nuclear weapons than targets.
Physicians for Social Responsibility has been active in the county for several years. Our Anaheim symposium in March of 1984 drew over 1,000 people from over 30 local community groups, most of which were as mainstream as Newport Beach.
It may be harder for some to “go public” about their concerns and sympathies in Orange County, but fully informed citizens will make the right decisions at the ballot box.
RICHARD J. MOLDAWSKY
South Laguna
Dr. Richard J. Moldawsky is the immediate past president of the Orange County chapter of Physicians for Social Responsibility Inc.
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