With my pacifist leanings, I am convinced that it is the least effective and most morally suspect way to bring about social or political change.
I hate all that goes with violence and have a deep aversion for riots, screaming, and angry outbursts,
But I am also a reader and student of history and I know that history does not always agree with my assessments or moral outrage.
Furthermore, as an amateur linguist, I know the meaning of moral equivalency and how it can be used to justify and multitude of sins. It is a key weapon in the arsenal of those who would such the life from legitimate movements and expressions of outrage.
It is very useful for those who wish to elevate temporary and isolated incidents of moral breaches to historic, persistent, and deep-rooted injustice. It can also be helpful in comparing our morality to that of others, ours being superior of course.
Friends, and if you read my blog, you are my friends, violence in the streets, as problematic as it is, will subside.
Rioters grow weary and go home.
Then, they pull back and continue to let the anger fester until it explodes again.
Perpetrators and systems of systemic injustice never grow weary and do not go home. The underlying causes continue.
When someone explodes, it is easy to direct all of our attention to the explosion and focus on it as being inappropriate and even the cause of the problem.
But, if we do a little analysis and engage in empathetic observation, we might gain a little perspective.
Gut reactions always evoke gut reactions.
Love, understanding, search for truth, pragmatism, empathy, morality, introspection, and prayerful self examination while stepping out of our narratives and boxes of thinking will take us farther down the road to justice.
We will continue to see things through our experiential and ideological lenses, but it would help to understand that we actually are wearing those lenses and take they off at least briefly to catch a glimpse of another reality.
There are many stupid things I could say to draw our attention from the issues that must be addressed in this hour. Many have already been said and some justify ourselves while condemning others who are doing the same thing we exalt. Here are a few examples:
Stupid Things I Could Say at a Time Like This #3
"England is sovereign. Law & order are necessary for a stable society. Rebelling against legitimate (or illegitimate) authority is wrong because God calls us to obey our rulers."
-Thomas Jefferson, 1776-or was that Jeff Thomarson?Stupid Things I Could Say at a Time Like This #653.2
"If everyone would just behave and accept injustice, everything will work out alright."Stupid Things I Could Say at a Time Like This #496.8
"Don't acknowledge the root causes of people's anger and frustration; it might be construed as condoning bad choices and responses."Stupid Things I Could Say at a Time Like This #397.3
"Don't remind people of why they are angry and frustrated because it might make them angry and frustrated."Stupid Things I Could Say at a Time Like This #654.8
"If native Americans had just complied with our directives to relocate, more might have survived."Stupid Things I Could Say at a Time Like This #1
Almost Anything
But then, I hear another voice,
Love thy neighbor as thyself.
And yet, another,
But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream! - Amos 5:24, NIV
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