Last night I attended a program at the Greenville main library, hosted by the Anderson chapter of Pax Christi, a Catholic peace organization. The presentation was an effort to build local support for "No More Victims" a nation-wide humanitarian aid organization which works to find medical sponsorships for war-injured Iraqi children and also forges bonds of communication and understanding between these children and their families and communities in the United States.

I arrived late and was stunned to find a handful of people in the meeting room at the Hughes public library. Most of those present were already supporters of Pax Christi. It upset me that so few people took the time to attend but I can't say I was surprised. As a veteran special events planner I can tell you that it takes a Herculean effort to gather a crowd these days, especially if there's no free liquor involved. Part of the presentation was a 15 minute video describing the children and their families already helped by No More Victims. I cried during most of the video because the children were still playful and happy despite their horrific injuries and the families so loving and caring. They were exactly like us, except their lives have been torn apart by a war that they do not understand. It literally hurts my heart to think about the civilians crushed by this war. Their homes destroyed, family members critically injured or killed by bombs and bullets. Most families have no running water and if they have electricity it is only available for 2 hours per day. Remember when we were without power in Greenville County for 4 days and how difficult that was? Imagine dealing with no running water and limited electricity for 3 years with no end in sight.

A recent United Nations report found that 100 Iraqi's are dying PER DAY in this war, 3,000 civilians died last month and 57% of the Iraqi war casualties are children. I was struck by the fact that in the last three years since the war began in early 2003, I have never seen an in depth story on any main stream media outlet of the impact of the Iraq war on children and their families. In my opinion that is a total abandonment of journalistic ethics and the responsibility of the media to dispatch the truth no matter how difficult the facts may be.

The bottom line is that war kills and maims without discretion. There is no such thing as strategic strikes that only kill the "bad guys." In this conflict we don't even know who the bad guys are because we can't speak their language and by destroying their country we've ignited a civil war. If you've never studied the history of Iraq, you may not realize that the country is comprised of tribes of people that have hated each other and fought each other for power and territory for centuries. Saddam Hussein maintained control by ruling with an iron fist. When we deposed Hussein with no plan and no leadership we broke the barriers that maintained order and created a climate of chaos.

Perhaps people don't want to know the details. Maybe it's easier to claim ignorance and maintain the position that 'what you don't know can't hurt you.' But it does. By not reaching out and helping the Iraqi people, especially the innocent children we have abandoned our responsibilities as citizens and as caring and concerned human beings. After 3 years of war, it's not enough to claim you didn't know about civilian casualties. The facts are out there you just have to open your eyes. No More Victims isn't a political organization it isn't even an anti-war organization. It's an effort begun by one concerned man named Cole Miller to reach out to children hurt by our bombs and our bullets. There were no politics discussed at the meeting, there were no anti-war or even anti-Bush sentiments expressed in the powerful video presentation. There were simple stories about the power of caring, concerned and pro-active people. I know in my heart that Americans care that they do want to help injured children recover and heal. This is your opportunity and every single person can make a difference, one child at a time. For more information click on www.nomorevictims.org or call Ann Cothran at (864) 221-2416.