Cycle of violence

With all the talk of fundamentalist threats and conspiracy theories in the air right now, terrorism is on everyone's mind...well almost everyone. But why is terrorism such a big problem in today’s world? How do we find a solution? Here's my take on the issue.

Violence is inherent in nature and malice and covetousness have been the cause of untold bloodshed since the dawn of man. Therein lies the root of the matter. Despite all the talk of equality, it's in human nature to crave the opposite. On the one hand each one of us wants to 'be better' than others, have more than others. On the other, we crave larger-than-life figures to follow, heroes and leaders - so that we may avoid the burden of searching for a vision, a purpose in life. This very laziness to seek the truth is also the why people choose a myopic view of life and limit their goals to success as defined by the norms of a material society - fame, fortune, whatever. So people, out of their moral laziness, resign themselves to lesser pursuits and become consumed by the trappings of their chosen paths - be it religion, money, power. Once trapped by such pursuits, people use the very limitations of their vision to justify immoral acts.

In the context of today's world, there are the economically strong, the worshippers of Mammon, who care only about enriching their coffers and insulate themselves from the consequences of their actions through their elitism. The consequence that such 'men' remain blissfully ignorant of is the economically weak majority being deprived of basic human needs and rights. The oppressed are pushed to a point where they are so bereft of dignity that they are more than willing to believe in any cause which offers that little hint of hope. For many, holding on to such hopes is the only way to survive through hard times. Often, such people are captivated by false messiahs who need do no more than point their finger and give people a target, real or imagined, to blame their troubles on. Instead of helping people work towards solving their problems, these leaders merely perpetuate the pointless venting of anger through violence and hatred. Violent crimes, perpetrated by desperate men, in the name of their beliefs, spread fear that drives the very machinery of oppression which lies at the root of the problem. 'Terrorists' and their like merely provide a pretext for the greedy and power-hungry to retain their grip on people and continue sucking the sap out of society.

Thus we are left with a vicious circle of greed, desperation, lies, fear and violence that perpetuates itself by feeding on innocent lives. Such a society can not be sustained indefinitely. Unless we recognize the root of the issue and right the fundamental wrongs, a lasting peace can not be achieved.