On violence
My thoughts on London.
First off, for whatever they're worth, my condolences to everyone in or who knows someone in London right now.
Second, I refuse to be impressed or intimidated by the act. Not out of some macho sense, but from looking at what they did. They picked a highly crowded metropolis with far too many people to monitor, picked the busiest time of day in congested areas, and told one another "at X time, go." That's it. They made no point. They accomplished nothing more than death.
Destruction is one of the simplest acts to commit. It requires little to no planning, organization, effort or thought. Creation, building, life...those take effort.
What did this accomplish? Some millitant groups gets to shout "Be afraid, cross us and people will die!" This means nothing. People with reason and without reason kill other people every damn day. The most common response to such an act is retribution, and more killing. If you bomb or kill in the name of a people or in "revenge" for a group, the odds are that same group you're avenging is going to have more people killed as a direct result of your actions.
Will these people live on in infamy? No. Some claim their religion will make them martyrs. This is one of religion's oldest, dirtiest tricks. I do not give a shit about any other aspect of your religion, when it encourages people to kill in the name of god, it is wrong. Done.
I would like people to look at what all the violent acts of the 20th and 21st centuries have accomplished. The wars started, the killings, the bombings, the assassinations. I would then like people to look at what non-violent protests, organized resistances and demonstrations have accomplished. Compare them. See which one WORKS and which just leads to more death.
If your aim truly is for the people you claim it is, it would be in your interest to work things out in a peaceful manner. It's the only way progress is made. But if your way is death, you're not interested in the people you claim to be avenging. You're into the power trip violence gives the committer of the act. You are worthless.
The answer is not laying down arms or never fighting. The answer is complex, and involves first and foremost understanding. We could kill every islamic militant in the world, and terror would not magically go away. No, you cannot reason with everyone, but the less you use reason, the more poeple will move beyond it's sway.
Simple solutions are a trap. They bulldoze reality in order to form a catchy sound byte. Resist simple solutions.
One final thought - don't dehumanize your enemy. Ever. Every side recognizing we're all humans is such a key step to getting over all of this bullshit. Soldiers have to take lives, and risk losing theirs. If every soldier understood what that meant, imagine the state of the world. It would be nice to see some of those soldiers who understood this leading my nation, instead of the Deferrment Gang.
First off, for whatever they're worth, my condolences to everyone in or who knows someone in London right now.
Second, I refuse to be impressed or intimidated by the act. Not out of some macho sense, but from looking at what they did. They picked a highly crowded metropolis with far too many people to monitor, picked the busiest time of day in congested areas, and told one another "at X time, go." That's it. They made no point. They accomplished nothing more than death.
Destruction is one of the simplest acts to commit. It requires little to no planning, organization, effort or thought. Creation, building, life...those take effort.
What did this accomplish? Some millitant groups gets to shout "Be afraid, cross us and people will die!" This means nothing. People with reason and without reason kill other people every damn day. The most common response to such an act is retribution, and more killing. If you bomb or kill in the name of a people or in "revenge" for a group, the odds are that same group you're avenging is going to have more people killed as a direct result of your actions.
Will these people live on in infamy? No. Some claim their religion will make them martyrs. This is one of religion's oldest, dirtiest tricks. I do not give a shit about any other aspect of your religion, when it encourages people to kill in the name of god, it is wrong. Done.
I would like people to look at what all the violent acts of the 20th and 21st centuries have accomplished. The wars started, the killings, the bombings, the assassinations. I would then like people to look at what non-violent protests, organized resistances and demonstrations have accomplished. Compare them. See which one WORKS and which just leads to more death.
If your aim truly is for the people you claim it is, it would be in your interest to work things out in a peaceful manner. It's the only way progress is made. But if your way is death, you're not interested in the people you claim to be avenging. You're into the power trip violence gives the committer of the act. You are worthless.
The answer is not laying down arms or never fighting. The answer is complex, and involves first and foremost understanding. We could kill every islamic militant in the world, and terror would not magically go away. No, you cannot reason with everyone, but the less you use reason, the more poeple will move beyond it's sway.
Simple solutions are a trap. They bulldoze reality in order to form a catchy sound byte. Resist simple solutions.
One final thought - don't dehumanize your enemy. Ever. Every side recognizing we're all humans is such a key step to getting over all of this bullshit. Soldiers have to take lives, and risk losing theirs. If every soldier understood what that meant, imagine the state of the world. It would be nice to see some of those soldiers who understood this leading my nation, instead of the Deferrment Gang.