63 years and counting
The 6th of August has passed by yet again, and still the world’s leaders line their troops up on either sides of the fence to toss rocks at each other.
It seems quite clear that the human condition leads to two contradictory sets of relationships - that of the individual, and that of the group. When cultures clash on a group level, the result is inevitably distrust, dislike, hatred and war. When cultures clash on an individual level, more often than not the result is an exchange of ideas and values, and a resulting increase in knowledge for both parties.
How do we move from the individual to the mob mentality? Is it simply that mobs are formed by the rotten element of society? I do not think so. Throughout history well-meaning people have been lead into battle by their leaders, their views temporarily altered by subtle propaganda and a misguided sense of nationalism.
I do not know the answer to this question. Until governments start to act responsibly on an individual level, we are doomed to centuries of bloodshed.
August 6, 2008 6:12 pm 
