Season's greetings
- jessjones655
- 1 day ago
- 2 min read
The wishes advanced at this time between family members, friends and work colleagues are sincere - and we promote them too: that people may have a happy new year and that there shall be peace on earth.
It’s not to put a dampener on these positive hopes, but to take them seriously, to state that the new year that will see peace on our planet will not be 2026. Nor will everyone share in good cheer in the weeks and months ahead.
From the little illegally occupied town of Bethlehem in what should be Palestine, to the ruination of large parts of eastern Ukraine, to the ongoing horrors of civil war in Sudan, there is a need for real peacemakers – people who can organise and develop the capacity to address the complex social determinants that impel people to oppress and to kill others. Unfortunately, the tone coming from the Westminster government and indeed many in the EU is one that suggests a wider European conflict is inevitable. We do not believe it is.
And in Scotland, as in the other terrains which make up this (dis) UK, there is worrying momentum to the ‘othering’ which misdirects people’s questions, concerns and anxieties about our changing society into resentment, racism and misogyny. This dangerous trend could go disgracefully and frighteningly further than the anticipated high votes for the populist far right in the forthcoming Scottish, Welsh and local English elections.
Identifying effective ways to counter this threat and to recover progressive directions has never been more urgent. Recent posts on this website about countering the far right, understanding the causes of conflict, and promoting the work of Scottish CND are testimony to many peoples’ determination to do good. Enjoy the festive season as you may – and add what you can to the steps that might take us to the realisation of such simple desires as achieving peace on earth and people showing goodwill to all.
Published 19 December 2025