Peace is not a dream; it is hard work, and there is nothing naive, glamorous or simplistic about it. Oscar Arias More Quotes by Oscar Arias More Quotes From Oscar Arias Nuclear arms kill many people all at once, but other weapons kill many people, little by little, every day, everywhere in the world. Oscar Arias nuclearpeopleworld Justice and peace can only thrive together, never apart. Oscar Arias thrivetogetherjustice The most deadly disease truly is the failure of the heart. Oscar Arias words-of-wisdomheartpeace How ironic for peacemaking efforts to discover that hatred is stronger for many than love; that the longing to achieve power through military victories makes so many men lose their reason, forget all shame, and betray history. Oscar Arias effortmilitarymen Peace consists, very largely, in the fact of desiring it with all one's soul. Oscar Arias soulpeacefacts I have to believe in the possibility of peace, because the alternative is to accept the inevitability of continual war, and of always living in fear. It doesn't have to be that way. However, there are no simple solutions, and I am not the possessor of a magic formula for peace. All I can say is that for peace to succeed it requires perseverance, patience, humility, compromise, and commitment, from all parties. Oscar Arias perseverancepartywar It's clear to me that many weapons sales are very short-sighted. The U.S. and other arms-producing countries sell weapons for a variety of reasons, but most sales involve strategic interest or profit motivation, or both. Oscar Arias motivationreasoncountry The problem with basing weapons sales on strategic interest is that these interests tend to shift over time, while weapons are durable goods that do not evaporate as quickly as some alliances do. Once supplied, they can't be taken back. That leads to situations such as the ones we have seen in Iraq, Somalia. Oscar Arias interestproblemtaken While the armed forces have intervened in the political affairs of every other Central American country over the past fifty years, with disastrous results, in Costa Rica we have peacefully transferred power from one administration to the next every four years. Oscar Arias politicalcountrypast The effect of one upright individual is incalculable. Oscar Arias
