Roughly 375,000 of the population in Iraq have vanished due to continued sectarian, ethnic and religious violence, and on top of that, there is also forced displacement.

Many international affairs are leading the United States in a horrifying direction, while some spoiled and brain dead Americans are mesmerized by how many times Britney Spears and Lindsey Lohan went to jail within the past year.

The first word that came to my mind when I heard on CNN that 50 percent of Americans supported a war against Iran was “WOW,” followed by some laughing out loud. Don’t these people think about the economy of our country?

Let’s put the idea of war aside for a bit and focus on the sufferings we have gone through because of the Iraq war. Do these 50 percent of Americans want to go through the same thing again? Are they the 50 percent who haven’t had a child who served in Iraq?

As an Iranian-American, I love the land I was born in and don’t want anything bad happening to it. I also feel the same exact way towards my other home, the United States of America.

I don’t even think the 50 percent who are supporting a war against Iran want to really hurt the Iranian people. They all want peace, but they think peace comes with war.

I came across a quote today written by Jimmy Carter, which said, “War may sometimes be a necessary evil. But no matter how necessary, it is always an evil, never a good. We will not learn how to live together in peace by killing each other’s children.”

I can’t agree more with this statement during these times.

Perhaps we should think of this a little differently. Maybe we should put ourselves into the Iraqi people’s shoes and imagine what our lives would be like if we were to be them for a day. I’m not talking about food, necessities, health care or things that money can buy. What I’m concerned about is when you lose your child to war. How about for once we imagine losing our young daughters or sisters because of war?

Why don’t we think of the Iraqi people (or any other foreign people) as patriots of their countries, and people who are defending their land against other nations?

I personally oppose any military aggression against my country, Iran. We truly need to look at the amount of funds we have gathered for human needs, instead of gathering funds for an endless war. I believe diplomacy is the best way to solve any problem.

I would like people to create a committee to make better relationships between the Iranians and Americans. Will there be a shift in the United States’ strategy towards Iran? Will there be a shift in Iran’s strategy towards its nuclear plan? I don’t know and I’m not going to bother myself with thinking about it, because it is more about the people rather than the governments.

For now, let’s work on the American-Iranian friendship. Let’s learn each other’s way of living and thinking. Let’s kick our addiction for oil and for once let’s think of humanity and make this world a better place for every one of its 6.5 billion people.

In the words of Benjamin Franklin, “Never has there been a good war or a bad peace.”