Peace

[Ted]

"A letter arrives stamped with the slogan 'The U.s. Army, key to peace." No army is the key to peace, neither the U.S. Army nor the Soviet Army nor any other. No 'great' nation has the key to anything but war. Power has nothing to do with peace. The more men build up military power, the more they violate peace and destroy it."

Thomas Merton.

[Omni_Skittles]

But that's life! We can't wish all wars to go away. Why? Because there is bad in this world. Fortunately there is also good in this world. You can't get rid of government because people are too dumb! anarchy would drive this world to insanity... not that it isn't.

[Ted]

Omni

You are correct. However, its being going on for thousands of years and hasn't worked yet.

It's kind of like a persistent headache for which you keep taking aspirine but never goes away. Eventually you try a different medication. If one thing doesn't work then we usually try something else.

Shalom
Ted

[Omni_Skittles]

are you saying there are different methods then what we are using to obtain peace?

Is peace even attainable? How do we know when we've achieved it?

[Ted]

Omni

That is what I am saying. All of the world's great faiths began on two tenets; justice and compassion. It would take a lot of work and could not be done overnight.

All we have to do is look at the world today. There is not nearly enough justice and compassion. In my own country it is sadly lacking. We have folks living in poverty. We have thousands of children that go to school hungry every day. We have a serious drug problem especially in the downtown east side of Vancouver. We have the mentally ill living on the streets. What do we do about it? We attack the symptoms and not the causes.

How so? People without a decent chance at life either because of poor upbringing or upbringing in poverty cannot get a decent job that makes it worth their while so perhaps they turn to sitting around on a street corner. Then they get into drugs which costs money. To get that money they turn to illegal acts. These illegal acts cause all kinds of problems for society so we hire more police who either move them along or arrest them.

Where do they move along to? They are arrested to what end; jail for a few days? They are out on the streets again. Their cycle starts all over. If they have children the cycle carries on and on and on.

Of course there are some bad folks. Some are out to make money for drugs? Some are members or organized crime.

If we had a just and compassionate society most of that would end. Those who still choose to behave unacceptably could be easily dealt with.

Consider Al Quaeda. Why and how did they come into existence. I could hazard a guess. Why was Iraq invaded. Sadam? Who put Sadam in power? Why did they put him in power? Perhaps they thought it would be easier and more certain to gain access to the oil? Muslim law says attack but only if attacked first? I think you get the picture.

Who put the Taliban in power or Maros, or Noriega? Why were they put into power? The self serving interests of an imperial nation?

China has also pronounced that they will get the resources they need even if they have to resort to military might. Another imperial power?

Castro defeated a very corrupt dictator on the right. He has been hated by the US ever since. Then we had the Bay of Pigs fiasco. I guess dictators are OK as long as they are on the right and not the left. So much for the claims of democracy. It is pure BS.

Chevez of Venezuela has threatened to cut of its oil shipments to the US. Does that mean another invasion is immanent?

If we start by looking at the causes and dealing with them we will have started on the road to peace. This begins in the hearts of individuals and should then spread wider as the parable of the mustard seed tells us.

Shalom
Ted

[Ted]

JAB

We will know. Is it attainable? I think it is in the distant future but only when we make the effort to bring about justice and compassion and not before.

Shalom
Ted

[theia]

Originally Posted by Ted

Omni

That is what I am saying. All of the world's great faiths began on two tenets; justice and compassion. It would take a lot of work and could not be done overnight.

All we have to do is look at the world today. There is not nearly enough justice and compassion. In my own country it is sadly lacking. We have folks living in poverty. We have thousands of children that go to school hungry every day. We have a serious drug problem especially in the downtown east side of Vancouver. We have the mentally ill living on the streets. What do we do about it? We attack the symptoms and not the causes.

How so? People without a decent chance at life either because of poor upbringing or upbringing in poverty cannot get a decent job that makes it worth their while so perhaps they turn to sitting around on a street corner. Then they get into drugs which costs money. To get that money they turn to illegal acts. These illegal acts cause all kinds of problems for society so we hire more police who either move them along or arrest them.

Where do they move along to? They are arrested to what end; jail for a few days? They are out on the streets again. Their cycle starts all over. If they have children the cycle carries on and on and on.

Of course there are some bad folks. Some are out to make money for drugs? Some are members or organized crime.

If we had a just and compassionate society most of that would end. Those who still choose to behave unacceptably could be easily dealt with.

Consider Al Quaeda. Why and how did they come into existence. I could hazard a guess. Why was Iraq invaded. Sadam? Who put Sadam in power? Why did they put him in power? Perhaps they thought it would be easier and more certain to gain access to the oil? Muslim law says attack but only if attacked first? I think you get the picture.

Who put the Taliban in power or Maros, or Noriega? Why were they put into power? The self serving interests of an imperial nation?

China has also pronounced that they will get the resources they need even if they have to resort to military might. Another imperial power?

Castro defeated a very corrupt dictator on the right. He has been hated by the US ever since. Then we had the Bay of Pigs fiasco. I guess dictators are OK as long as they are on the right and not the left. So much for the claims of democracy. It is pure BS.

Chevez of Venezuela has threatened to cut of its oil shipments to the US. Does that mean another invasion is immanent?

If we start by looking at the causes and dealing with them we will have started on the road to peace. This begins in the hearts of individuals and should then spread wider as the parable of the mustard seed tells us.

Shalom
Ted

This is the key, I feel sure, Ted

Originally Posted by Ted

JAB

We will know. Is it attainable? I think it is in the distant future but only when we make the effort to bring about justice and compassion and not before.

Shalom
Ted

What is your definition of peace?

[Ted]

Every day I see ads on TV for 'World Vision', Foster Parents Plan', the 'Canadian Leprosy Mission', the battle against aids, poverty in my own country. Yet in this world we have CEO's and retired CEOs and multinationals etc. making obscene profits. They try to assuage their consciences with token donations to some worthy cause.

Countries spend billions on weapons and spreading an atmosphere of terror. Yet within their own countries as well as around the world some of the money could be used to help these folks.

There is enough money and enough food produced in this world to feed everyone and generate a reasonable standard of living for them all. Some folks think they need millions a year to live on. They think they need two or three cars to drive. They drive cars and vehicles that are destroying our planet.

Having the best and most stable economy in the world won't be of any value if we are all dead or dying.

Greed runs rampant and the average Canadian sits back and watches.

Shalom
Ted