Change From Within

Well, this letter to the editor has been hanging on my bulletin for months. I checked out the name of the author and she's an anti-war activist in North Georgia. She's an older lady with a lot of kick.

Anyway, the letter, which was published in the Atlanta newspaper, has stuck in my mind these past five months. So, here it is:

Want Change? Start Actively Looking Within

Thank you for the op-ed article about unrecognized attitudes that lurk in the subconscious ("We don't know what we think," @issue, Jan. 23) I have been a citizen activist for many years. When I first becamse involved in public policy, I thought problems should be addressed from the top down. That is, lobby Congress and the administration. However, after writing letters, attending hearings, lobbying my representatives in Washington and seeing little if any change, I realized we have to work form the bottom up. We have to change ourselves.

Humanity seems to have an infinite capacity for self-delusion. We pray for peace and vote for war. We do more than allow our leaders to manipulate us; we encourage it.

Joan O. King
Sautee, GA, USA