Part of the killing machine

We have to earn our living in this world. Some of us are reduced to drudgery, some make a reasonable living. What about those members of the population who feel unhappy or guilty about their work? I wonder how many Woodstockers fit into that category?

Our largest employer, Ametek-Rotron, manufactures war materials that are part of the killing machine that so much of this country’s endless war economy is based on. Has Ametek-Rotron ever considered conversion to peaceful production? Do any of the employees feel unhappy about the widespread murder of innocent children caused by the drones they help to construct? Do they rationalize those feelings with slogans, or do they ever imagine their finger on the trigger with the nearby Woodstock school blown to bits, with blood and fire and dust clouding the air over the golf course, or perhaps the restaurant there hosting a wedding party that has been attacked.

I can’t believe that any of them see themselves as happily maintaining that sort of life. So what do they think about in relation to their work? What do they feel? How do they resolve all this? Does conscience make cowards of us all?

Jay Wenk
Woodstock