Topic: Social and Cultural Issues
World Without War, Hate, or Destruction Life is so short and so fragile. Needless suffering can be avoided if we should just put the effort in to making it a reality.by Beau Beauregard
(Libertarian)
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
The world is much simpler than people tend to imagine. It can seem so complicated with the hectic pace that life seems to take now a days. It is very unfortunate that most people are not willing to take responsibility for their part in ensuring the world is a better place. We often look to leaders to show us the way, but leaders are actually the problem. If you really think about it, the only reason we have leaders is because the average person refuses to take responsibility for what is required of them to keep a peaceful and free society. This is not just about America, but the world itself. We as human beings for the most part neglect our duties to make this world a stable and peaceful place. Instead of standing up for the issues that matter most, namely equality for all, and freedom for all, we instead choose to ignore and impart these problems on leaders.
Leaders like anyone else, are flawed and are subject to temptation and doing things which would be considered wrong by the vast majority of society. But that flaw could not arise if the whole of the people took individual responsibility for equality and freedom. So the question is, why don't people do that? I have only been able to come up with one answer in all the years I have thought about it. People give up their rights to leaders or groups of individuals who are better at articulating points than the people themselves. Humans are social beings, and wanting to be apart of something special and unique is a major reason why groups or leaders are able to change the minds of people who ordinarily would not support what is taking place.
There is really no such thing as hatred of people based on skin color, or religion, or political beliefs. These things are created and magnified by group think or leaders that amplify a misunderstood problem. People just want to feel like they are part of something that has purpose. If one was to take any 2 individuals on earth and place them in the same room together to talk amongst each other, whether a black man and a kkk member, or a jew and an arab, they would quickly find that without any out side intervention from society or those leading society, that they had far more in common with each other than anyone would have ever allowed them to believe outside of this room. They both have families, they both love their children, they both want the best for their families, they both hate war and suffering, they both want to see the world a peaceful place, they both want to be able to live their lives without having to worry so much the list can go on until topics run out. So what makes them change when they are in society?
The truth of the matter is that individuals allow themselves to be manipulated because they don't have answers to all the problems in their lives. When one is faced with problems they cannot overcome on their own, and they find another person who claims to have solutions, many times humans will just accept that solution even if it does not fit the problem because they are desperate for answers. We must learn as a species to overcome this flaw and to think to ourselves every time we are ready to hate someone else, or to deny them their freedom in some way, that in the end we all really want the same thing. It is time for us as a species to begin to take responsibility for our own actions and to stop blaming others as scapegoats. Life is too short for this kind of attitude and we have been plagued with it for all of mankinds existence. We need to all learn to respect the people around us and most of all, to talk with them and understand their point of view. Life isn't about trying to force your beliefs on someone else, it's about letting every person live their life and experience the things around them in their own way. We are much better off allowing everyone to have a point of view than we are if we were to devolve into groupthink and cost ourselves the chance to truly prosper as a species.
Did you like this article? If you did, Thumb It! 4 thumbs so far
2008 Beau Beauregard, all rights reserved.
Published: Tuesday, January 15, 2008
Last modified: Tuesday, January 15, 2008
The views expressed in this
article are those of Beau Beauregard only and do not represent
the views of Nolan Chart, LLC or its affiliates. Beau Beauregard is
solely responsible for the contents of this article and is not an
employee or otherwise affiliated with Nolan Chart, LLC in his/her role as a columnist.
I'm all for allowing others to have a point of view, to believe whatever they want to believe. But when consensus becomes activism, and an agenda is detrimental to the well being of other human beings, I will not tolerate promotion of the harmful activity and will harshly criticize the "activists".
I have traveled the world, and I agree with you that we humans share many desires and traits. It's when we allow ourselves to be "led" that we do harm to our fellow humans. Group thinking, be it perverted religeous doctrine that produces suicide bombers, or eco-centrism which sets "environmentalists" against commodity producers (ranchers, fishermen, miners, farmers) is the worst enemy of humanity, and the politicians and medias best friend.
Want to comment on this
article? Leave your comment here. Your email address is
required to track your comment. However, we will neither
publish your email address nor distribute it to other
organizations or persons. The only reason we might use
it would be if we needed to contact you regarding your
comment. All comments are subject to our
terms of use policy.
2008 Beau Beauregard, all rights reserved.