This is interesting..
one of the problems that arises, it how do you deal with violence directed towards your self?
If i chose nonviolence (negotiations, talks, the UN or other routes on a national scale)- and my counterpart chooses violence..what do i do?
the natural reaction is to respond to violence with violence.. but then, I , (Personally, or as a nation) am behaving in a way that i have defined as morally reprehensible.... i am lowering my standards, i am allowing others to dictate my responses.. and once others know how to provoke a response in my by doing X, you can bet your bottom dollar, that is exactly what they will do, time after time!
the alternates are not good, and not fast.. but the Dali Lama has not called for violence in response to China's invasion of Tibet.... he has responded with non violence, because he is not going to let China's behavior govern his.. This is a very difficult thing to do..on a personal level, and harder to do on a governmental or political level, allit takes is one person, to miss behave and ruin it for all.. all it take is one Tibetan national to shoot one Chinese soldier, to have China say, Tibet is waging war, and we must kill all the Tibetans left in this city, this province, this country.
When it comes to a response to the WTC and Pentagon attacks, we, the people of the US do have a choice.. we can chose violence or we can chose other options.. There are other choices.. the "natural one" might be to return the attack.. but is that the right one?
Some think that other choices are not as effective.. but actually, since violence really only results in a short term solution, and not in a long term one.. violence (ie, war) is just a quick and dirty fix.. Nonviolence is slower, much slower, but the long term outcome is better (short term, violence, the outcome is much worse..)
being able to reach a political maturity to be able to chose a reactions is difficult.. and sometimes, violence might be the best choice you make.. there might be times when countering violence with violence is the choice that you make.. but all to often, i think, the reactions is visceral, and not thought out... and we leave ourselves at the mercy of others...we let their behavior, their violence, provoke a violent response in us.. we let them control our behavior...
i wish i could say, that i always am able to control my own reactions, and that i don't fall into the trap of being provoked.. but i get better each day, and i stive to be better.
Is it wrong to fly airplanes into buildings?
Is it wrong to blow up synagogues?
Yes.. but is it also not wrong for me to respond by blowing up town, airports and military bases? If my responce to a wrong is to commit my own wrong, what difference is there between me and my enemy? and if there is no difference, then why is he my enemy?
how can i change my enemy into my friend? can i do that by behaving violently towards him? or should i respond differently?
