In addition to being a prolific author and a devoted family man, Goff is
an energetic activist. He lives in Raleigh, North Carolina, within
striking distance of his former base, Fort Bragg, home of the Special
Forces. Now he goes there to demonstrate for peace.
His specialty as an organizer is building resistance to the military
from within it, among soldiers and their families. He co-founded Bring
Them Home Now! and helped organize Walkin' to New Orleans, a 150-mile
march this spring from Alabama to Louisiana to protest the militarism
that is impoverishing our society.
William T. Hathaway, another Special Forces rebel author, shares Goff's
conviction that patriarchal machismo causes war and other pathologies of
our culture. His first novel, A WORLD OF HURT, won a Rinehart Foundation
Award for its portrayal of the blocked libido and the need for paternal
approval that draw men to the military.
"I was trying to uncover the psychological roots of war, the forces that
so persistently drive us to slaughter," says Hathaway. "Our culture has
degraded masculinity into a deadly toxin. It's poisoned us all. Men have
to confront this part of themselves before men and women together can
heal it. I was lucky to have found a partner skilled at this.
"Understanding the effects that our culturally imposed gender roles have
on us is crucial to understanding why we go to war. One attraction of
war is that it is a substitute for eroticism; it is the ultimate sexual
perversion. It also reduces our ability to love."
Hathaway shares Goff's leftist politics. He wrote the introduction to
AMERICA SPEAKS OUT: Collected Essays from Dissident Writers and has
published numerous political articles.
In his latest piece, "Sedition, Subversion, Sabotage," he argues against
liberalism, saying its purpose is to preserve the system by defusing
discontent with superficial reforms. "Capitalism, although resilient, is
willing to change only in ways that shore it up, so before anything
truly different can be built, we have to bring it down."
Hathaway's writing won him a Fulbright professorship at universities in
Germany, where he currently lives.
In addition to writing he supports counter-recruitment work to persuade
young people not to join the military. He is active in a group
encouraging soldiers to refuse to go to Iraq and Afghanistan. For those
who want to desert, they have a sanctuary network that helps them build
new lives. "Refusing or deserting the military takes great courage, and
I wish I had been that brave. If convicted, they're punished viciously
because they're such a threat to the government's power. They're the
real heroes," the combat-decorated Green Beret veteran states.
Hathaway sees spirituality as an essential component of a more peaceful
world. "My military experience convinced me that to prevent war we need
to raise human consciousness. A look at the history of revolutions shows
that switching economic and political systems isn't enough. The same
aggressive personality types take over and start another army. We have
to change the basic unit, the individual.
"I've found Eastern meditation to be the most effective way to change
people. Unlike psychotherapy or prayer, it works on the physiological
level, altering the brain waves and metabolism. It refines the nervous
system and expands the awareness so that the unity of all human beings
becomes a living reality, not just an idealistic concept.
"After a while of meditation people stop wanting to consume things that
increase aggression, such as meat, alcohol, and violent entertainment.
They become more peaceful.
"I think it's very true that peace begins within you. As Gandhi said,
'We have to become the change we want to see in the world.'"
Hathaway's just-released novel, SUMMER SNOW, approaches peace from this
meditative perspective. It is set amidst the war on terrorism as a US
warrior falls in love with a Sufi Muslim and learns from her an
alternative to the military mentality.
The book's wisdom figure is an aged Sufi woman, the warrior's lover's
teacher, who has survived by outsmarting male political and religious
hierarchies. "This bin Laden, this Bush, all these leading men, they
have highjacked us all with their violence," she states. "They have
turned the whole world into their suicide airplane. These men are too
primitive to have such power. Too ignorant of the underlying reality. We
must stop them. We must take the boys' toys away from them...these
terrible weapons."
How she does that becomes the climax of the novel.
an energetic activist. He lives in Raleigh, North Carolina, within
striking distance of his former base, Fort Bragg, home of the Special
Forces. Now he goes there to demonstrate for peace.
His specialty as an organizer is building resistance to the military
from within it, among soldiers and their families. He co-founded Bring
Them Home Now! and helped organize Walkin' to New Orleans, a 150-mile
march this spring from Alabama to Louisiana to protest the militarism
that is impoverishing our society.
William T. Hathaway, another Special Forces rebel author, shares Goff's
conviction that patriarchal machismo causes war and other pathologies of
our culture. His first novel, A WORLD OF HURT, won a Rinehart Foundation
Award for its portrayal of the blocked libido and the need for paternal
approval that draw men to the military.
"I was trying to uncover the psychological roots of war, the forces that
so persistently drive us to slaughter," says Hathaway. "Our culture has
degraded masculinity into a deadly toxin. It's poisoned us all. Men have
to confront this part of themselves before men and women together can
heal it. I was lucky to have found a partner skilled at this.
on us is crucial to understanding why we go to war. One attraction of
war is that it is a substitute for eroticism; it is the ultimate sexual
perversion. It also reduces our ability to love."
Hathaway shares Goff's leftist politics. He wrote the introduction to
AMERICA SPEAKS OUT: Collected Essays from Dissident Writers and has
published numerous political articles.
In his latest piece, "Sedition, Subversion, Sabotage," he argues against
liberalism, saying its purpose is to preserve the system by defusing
discontent with superficial reforms. "Capitalism, although resilient, is
willing to change only in ways that shore it up, so before anything
truly different can be built, we have to bring it down."
Hathaway's writing won him a Fulbright professorship at universities in
Germany, where he currently lives.
In addition to writing he supports counter-recruitment work to persuade
young people not to join the military. He is active in a group
encouraging soldiers to refuse to go to Iraq and Afghanistan. For those
who want to desert, they have a sanctuary network that helps them build
new lives. "Refusing or deserting the military takes great courage, and
I wish I had been that brave. If convicted, they're punished viciously
because they're such a threat to the government's power. They're the
real heroes," the combat-decorated Green Beret veteran states.
Hathaway sees spirituality as an essential component of a more peaceful
world. "My military experience convinced me that to prevent war we need
to raise human consciousness. A look at the history of revolutions shows
that switching economic and political systems isn't enough. The same
aggressive personality types take over and start another army. We have
to change the basic unit, the individual.
"I've found Eastern meditation to be the most effective way to change
people. Unlike psychotherapy or prayer, it works on the physiological
level, altering the brain waves and metabolism. It refines the nervous
system and expands the awareness so that the unity of all human beings
becomes a living reality, not just an idealistic concept.
"After a while of meditation people stop wanting to consume things that
increase aggression, such as meat, alcohol, and violent entertainment.
They become more peaceful.
"I think it's very true that peace begins within you. As Gandhi said,
'We have to become the change we want to see in the world.'"
Hathaway's just-released novel, SUMMER SNOW, approaches peace from this
meditative perspective. It is set amidst the war on terrorism as a US
warrior falls in love with a Sufi Muslim and learns from her an
alternative to the military mentality.
The book's wisdom figure is an aged Sufi woman, the warrior's lover's
teacher, who has survived by outsmarting male political and religious
hierarchies. "This bin Laden, this Bush, all these leading men, they
have highjacked us all with their violence," she states. "They have
turned the whole world into their suicide airplane. These men are too
primitive to have such power. Too ignorant of the underlying reality. We
must stop them. We must take the boys' toys away from them...these
terrible weapons."
How she does that becomes the climax of the novel.
(Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher).
