Today a question.

What are we going to do beyond having a frank discussion about violence around the world and the murder of innocent people being killed?

Upfront, I don’t have the answers but I hope to provide a measure of understanding with a point of view.

It was about forty years ago, we heard the news everyday about left wing fundamentalists and fringe sects of the communist movement blowing up car bombs and killing people.  Before that the endless bloodshed of the Arab, Israeli conflict and the tragic events of Northern Ireland.  Everyday we heard the left wing terrorists did this and that.  It wasn’t our problem, it was over there or in South and Central America.  I believe ignoring these events was mistake number one.

At the time many on the social democratic left were complaining, about the word “left” being used.  It had a mental image for sure and served the more conservative interests in a society of people who didn’t understand the difference between radicals and moderate versions of the left.  Some say, well we overcame that.  Not so, life and circumstance merely changed the perspective of life.

Radical Muslim Groups and radical fundamentalist conservative groups and right wing religious zealots decided it was their turn to change the world.

We had and have this playing out before our eyes now.

We have some of this activity happening in Canada and the United States because we didn’t become involved at the grassroots level when it started as someone else’s problem.

Today the right wing conservative and religious movements are complaining they are being unfairly characterized on the news, it’s easy to say what goes round comes round but that won’t solve the problem. It is high time to examine ourselves and ask are we with our attitudes spreading a verbal infection that is gripping the world?  Face it all this hate, ignorance, racism, secular mistrust, and fear are feelings within ourselves when we feel, as a society we are not living up to our own expectations.

Here is a place we all might start.  Each of us stand in front of the mirror and tell the person you see the truth.  Ask am I part of the problem?  Am I living up to my own expectations?  Am I part of the fearful or the fear mongering?  Do I find it easy to hate people I don’t know.  No we don’t all feel everyone of these emotions.  But if we ask and answer the questions honestly individually we can start to make a difference collectively, if as a world population we have a discussion and decide to take the actions needed in our own backyard we can put an end to this murder and violence.

Impossible you say?

Well putting a man on the moon was impossible in 1960 but they did it in 1969.  Nothing is impossible if we  put our mind to it.

Fred Steele