TELL THEM THAT I'M YOUR GUN: I'm currently putting together the pieces for a science-fiction novel which will have as one of its themes the work of peacemaking. How can peace be built--not merely the absence of war, but a place of reconciliation and restitution?

So recommend things to me! If this idea makes you think of books, movies, whatever, why not email me? There's a link on the sidebar, or it's eve_tushnet@yahoo.com .

I note that this is not a pacifist novel and I'm not super interested in that argument; I'm interested in stories of peacemaking. (Stories which take place within severely disciplined and controlled environments with obvious power systems, like military units or prisons, and stories about people who themselves are kind of crazy and chaotic and not obviously peaceful, are especially welcome.)

Here, have a picture. (Via Andrew Sullivan.)

eta: In case this helps provoke ideas: I think I'm mostly looking for nonfiction, though fiction is also definitely welcome; and I'm very interested in stories of institutions designed/ostensibly designed to promote peace, reconciliation, healing, or rehabilitation which instead become complicit in violence and degradation. ...And thanks very much, to those who have already written with suggestions.

"YES, THAT IS AN EXAMPLE OF WHAT I WAS TALKING ABOUT."

COMPASSION MAKES A FAMILY. Via the Rattus.

"IF IT CAN'T BE HAPPY, MAKE IT BEAUTIFUL."

FASCINATING STUFF. The commenters offer a few more possible explanations, including at least one in which the causal arrow runs the other way.

SAUL ALINSKY'S LITTLE PLATOONS: A fascinating piece from Jesse Walker. Summary: "Critics of the expiring activist group [ACORN] say it was driven by the vision of Saul Alinsky. If only that were true." But there's lots more inside.

"OFFICER PURCHASES FOOD FOR MAN CAUGHT STEALING."

FLOWERS IN THE DUSTBIN:

Green and beautiful low-income housing? This sounds like an oxymoron. The usual standard for housing for the poor has been cheap and functional. But only this year came Intervale Green, a low-income apartment building in the South Bronx that might just be a model for developers. ...

Welcome to Intervale Green Apartments. Quietly but clearly it engages in a dialogue with the old psychology and social policies that say the poor don't need beauty--just basics. But Biberman understands that beautiful places change people's attitudes, reduce stress, improve productivity, and also give people hope.

more (I forget where I found this)

THE FEAST OF SAINT LONGINUS: "...[T]he American military now earns a 'great deal' of trust from a larger swathe of the American public than the White House, Congress, the media, and organized religion combined."

MULES AND WOMEN: My Ladyblog post about that article comparing Isabel Paterson, Rose Wilder Lane, and Zora Neale Hurston; with bonus Ayn Rand, Dorothy Day, and (maybe!) GEM Anscombe....