The speed of peace - Who controls you?

 

This may seem like an easy question to answer. However, we often take actions that are counter-productive to living in peace. For example, we know that mass/public transit is a better method than everyone owning a car. Yet the perception of public/mass transit carries a degree of shame.

Each of us wants to protect ourselves from harm yet we are willing to give information freely for the sake of convenience as we stay connected to the internet. We are spending more money on security because of the want of convenience as this want destroys peace. The programs of social media platforms have been designed to encourage content. That content is filled with hateful rants and shallow lifestyle advertising. We know this and yet as a society we are not willing to curtail ourselves away from what we know is destroying us because to an individual there is no way anyone is going to tell me what to do.

There are great arguments about what the “government” is doing to our lives, yet a democracy is rooted in the people being informed, being engaged, being respectful and being willing to work at finding solutions together. Often, we get people who only vote and think that is enough. Again, it is not convenient for us to be that involved because there are shows on streaming services to watch, sports, vacations, jobs, families, healthcare, and community partnership volunteering. Because of all the pressures people feel, the decision process that is crucial to a democracy is left to erode. The speed of peace relies on each of us to take greater responsibility to be correctly informed. Peace relies upon each of us to engage in public dialogue with respect as changes are made to improve society. This is the situation we are in and if society decays, the tasks of peace become greater.

As people begin to feel constrained for whatever reason they will need to vent. How that is done is an important component of peace. What is funny is that it is rare for a persons to say they suck at communication. Often people say they are good at it. If that were true we would not be in the mess we are. What this indicates is that we are lying to ourselves every day and that is very harmful to peace. How can we say we are in control of ourselves when we can not even speak truth to our own selves. We built a society that wants cheap products, quick service, and no one responsible for our collective actions. That is a recipe for disaster.

It has taken thousands of years to get where we are today. It will take a few more years to improve peace. But it will hinge on each of us to be responsible, respectful, patient, caring and willing to work harder at peace. At your speed, the world will have peace.

The Speed of Peace

 

Without a doubt, we are living in interesting times in 2022. In my view, the largest shift has been the increase of distrust in the world. In particular the question of trust in authority to a multi-pronged monster including who are the trusted authorities?

A number of years ago there were the protests of the Multi-lateral Agreement on Investment. The protests around the world for peace as the Occupy Movement, We Are the 99%, Jasmine Revolution, Arab Spring, and others. Each of these protests have asked questions of trust in authority. Of course, there is the reality of war on a global scale being discussed and in every war, trust is a casualty each second. Now those are some of the ideology questions towards mistrust. The physical impact of trust is also being tested.

Physically, we are being shown that this planet is alive on its own. We are witnessing unprecedented weather and geological events across the globe. It was not too long ago the  Indian Ocean had an earthquake that sparked a tsunami during 2004. Japan, 2011 had a similar experience. Hurricanes, heat, floods, fires have all set records for intensity of force.

Those two areas of mistrust are the mind and body, now we have the spiritual impacts. What is peace telling me about the impacts on the spirit. First, peace tells me that this is the utmost of importance. Trust needs a leap of faith sometimes and now is such a time. Sadly, the population of the world has been going through some shite and people need to vent. How are we do deal with that “venting”. For proper ventilation, we need to understand the speed of peace. This is what my spirit is asking me, what is the speed of peace?

That question leaves me with this – strengthen your patience, you are going to need a shit ton of it.

Corruption Management

 

There is a significant dispute as to what are facts. The debate is of such force that I am sure this time frame of the last 20 years will be of historic interest. At some point, the monster that has been released upon the world of late will be tamed.

Taking a step into a mindset of insanity, I rant:

We have the rise and impacts of the internet. The entire world is open to everyone who can get to a computer. The impact is just beginning, which is connected with the depths of electronic technology integrated into each person life. Households and the content of those homes are now connected to the internet, automobiles are connected to the internet and drive themselves, most people carry a mobile device/phone, billboards are now television screens, the average television size has expanded beyond necessary. A wristwatch is now command central where you can start your car, lock your doors and windows, tell you to buy toilet paper and probably give you wipe techniques for a better clean. OOOOOHHH, What can be done?

All this connectivity is stressing people out. As the cliché tells us, too much of anything is a bad thing. I hope we have a long way to go before we reach the tipping point, but I must fear that it is too close. What can be done?

The amount of garbage that takes place daily bothers me. To be as simplistic as possible, the garbage is corruption. This ranges from the person who wipes snot on a bathroom wall to those who say they are good drivers yet could not follow another car properly because they have to go faster than the speed limit. Also, there is the person who steals cars, those who are involved in human trafficking, and let us not forget about the corporate corruption, and state corruption. For years, these people have caused a constant gnawing of disgust. OOOOOHHHHH, What can be done?

Insanity rant over.

Sense of Peace and Purpose

What is the goal of humanity? Ponder that question for a moment. When you feel you have a good grasp of a simple answer, put yourself at the centre of that responsibility to achieve that goal.

What characteristics will be different from your present person? If you say nothing, you are not being honest with yourself. If there was nothing to change, the world would be at total peace. Each of us is a reflection of the world. Right now the world has some massive challenges taking place. In turn, each of us must also carry a certain amount of responsibility to overcome these challenges.

Most of us can not handle the pressure of the entire world on their shoulders. Thankfully we do not have to, if each of us do our part. It must be a reality that many of us are not doing their part. Due to the fact that the world is not experiencing a great time of peace, there has to be many people that are not doing their part. The complexity comes form those who say they are acting in the best interests of others when in fact the opposite is true.

When the reality of intentions, actions, and impact result in breakdowns of peace, those involved in specific acts may be caught up in the chaos. For those people, they may not even understand they are acting in harmful ways. With that, we need to find away through all the hate that is being spread around the world. More specifically, we need to find away through all the hate in our own mind and then outwards from own lives.

From the work we do to find peace within our own minds, the focus needs to be extended into a purpose of peace outwardly. Seeking calm and patience while we work together for peace is a goal. This is most needed when the frustrations of life cloud the mind. Peace in purpose while we have purpose in peace. As we build a sense of peace, that work and purpose will become the pathway to a greater peace than we currently have.

Peace

 Even before there was a formal recognition of the study of peace, there has always been the pursuit to obtain an understanding of how to be peaceful. There is an immense amount of work done that discusses peace

Is there a program of peace at your school? Is there a faculty of peace at your school? Is there an institution dedicated to peace at your school?

Those questions point to a reality of school which is to educate, to bring understanding to the person and the world. To bring a singularity of thought to the questions above is to see that, in essence, school is a device for peace. Everything we study is a device for peace. Every society and organization built has, in its own way, sought peace. Even though we may not agree with how laws, rules, systems and institutions have all been devised to bring peace, the ideology of such actions has been to bring order, predictability, justice, rights, and truth to the world.  

A few theories and processes that have been fun to explore in terms of peace are chaos theory, complexity theory, social cubism, sense of coherence, reflective practice and community psychology. There are many more theories, processes and ideologies that are applied to understand peace. Some ideologies include religions such as Buddhism, Christianity, Islam, and Judaism. This list can be endless.  Each are needed as people have their own versions of how and what peace is. With that understanding, because of the number of people, there are over 7 billion ways to achieve peace and that number is growing.

The difficulty of peace is when we have to mix these billions of methods into some semblance of singularity. For some, the ease of causing harm, using might, fear, and violence to find peace is the go-to method. For example Ukraine and the people who engage in corruption such as human trafficking. In such realities as those two, peace becomes a very difficult place for the mind.

In such situations, violence, revenge, hate, terror, loathing and a number of other elements that bring rot to the world can become instant reactions. In peace, instant reaction is an enemy. Peace asks needs us to be careful with what we are doing and thinking. Peace needs many things that include we have patience, empathy, forgiveness, fortitude, resolve, charity, and creativity.

We have a great deal of work to do and the rest of time to complete it. It would be best to complete such work as early as possible so that we can enjoy peace longer.

Trust can Rust

 In earlier posts I wrote about trust (Broken Trust and Peace, 2017. Trust and Peace, 2013 and Trust, 2012). The idea in this post is how we trust some people to be honest and others to be dishonest. There is another element where trust is slowly eroded – hence trust can rust. Now this erosion is not always a negative element.

Sometimes there are those who are trusted to be assholes, we all know a few of those people. When those people begin to change and lose that element of assholishness, that trust begins to rust and transform into a positive trust. This is like a copper roof rusting into a green colour which everyone likes. Sometimes things change and the manner in which we trust others can change as well.

On a global historical scale, we have examples of trust going from enemies to allies, such as the battles between France and Britain. For centuries these two fought all over the world with the final battle taking place in 1775 on the Plains of Abraham in Quebec. This battle is why Canada and RUSA are mostly English speaking countries. If France had won that battle, these two might have been French speaking countries. Again the two world wars pitted Germany and others against France, Britain and others. Today all of these countries form a military alliance under the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

On a personal basis, each of us will have dreams. These dreams indicate a change of some sort. As the change takes place, the old you must rust and be removed. The old you will have a new layer of trust as the old version is no more. Each of us are in control of that process. How each of us will go through such a process and what we are at the end is always in flux. Sometimes we come out better, other times we may come out worse.

The next phase is to understand how we come out is always a learning experience. Taking the experience as just that “a learning experience” we need to see the benefits to building a peaceful person and society.  

Peace Rant

 

I am writing about peace. Peace is a concept and a reality of thought that is to bring balance to life. Peace is a path to walk into chaos and understand as well as know that you will get through to the other side with better balance than you entered into the reality with. You have to have the balance of life well-intended in your mind to give peace to the realities of being.

When you have the realities of peace well balanced in life you will see the benefits of teaching children, giving life to others, doing what is right and giving everything in your life the best you have.

The study of peace is a journey into the realms that sleep deep within your mind. That journey into your mind is a journey into the deepest depths of the universe. As we seek to understand ourselves, we seek to understand the universe. This balance is what brings us to the realities of being alive.

As we look around the world we see a great many things. There is a great amount of greed and the personal pursuit of material possessions. These pursuits only drive us to the paths of human materialism. This path is not the path of peace but a false path. Be aware that when you seek peace it I not in the form of materials but the form of spirit.

Peace is spirit first, it is understanding the path of helping others before you help yourself. Peace is the path that will allow us to achieve every goal that humanity is set out to achieve. As we seek to build nations, cities, towns, homes, skyscrapers, sports stadiums, statured, cathedrals and places of worship we seek to find peace.

We build hospitals and places of learning to help ease the pains e endure due to the individual pursuits of materialism. Peace is a spiritual goal that we must keep in the mind every minute. When we feel love, the heart-pounding, skin-shivering emotions of love are at the core of peace. We need to understand that the realities of peace are held within those emotions of feeling love for others than we feel for ourselves.

This love for the world is a major step in to journey to finally get to world peace. The journey is long because we make it so. The journey can be as quick as tomorrow if we dared to make the journey that short. However to do that we will have to give up the materialism that has a grip on many of us.

We see the many people who want expensive cars, houses, clothes, vacations, parties and lifestyles that are catered. Peace is none of that. Peace is understanding that the house you have is what you need. The amount of money that you make is not a condition of peace but a condition of unrest in the minds of those that seek it.

God is talking to us in the whispers of the wind. In that wind is the understanding of peace. It has already been given to us and has already been supplied to us. We have only to listen to the wind. We must have the courage to hear and endure the so-called insults of others as we shed the need and greed of having the expensive cars, houses, clothes, vacations and lifestyles.

The understanding of peace is that the world around us is all a game. We have to stand tall to face the world when it challenges us. We have to bring everything we have to the job at hand. The reality of Peace takes a great amount of energy and will to push forward.

As we build peace we must understand the past wrongs that have taken centuries to show us what was once the mentality of the people is now a shameful act of the people. These moments are episodes such as the truth and reconciliation commissions. such commissions will provide us with pathway s forward in peace. We have to have the slow characteristics of peace. With each step we take in peace there will be new opportunities.

Forming governments in the world will indeed need peace theory if these governments are going to push forward into new realities that are improved. We have years to ensure we allow peace to formulate the foundations of peace.

These foundations rest in the realities of trust, fairness, equality and righteousness. The world is needed to understand these items of government. As we write constitutions, bylaws and similar acts of policy, The goals of society which are peace need to be expressed in great detail in the documents of a society. How else are we to improve the world if we do not allow the transformation of each of us and embody the peaceful thoughts in our governing styles of peace.

What is peace? How do we find it? where do we go to feel its impact? All of these questions are important and each question should be thoroughly examined. If we are to be serious in peace, we must ensure that everyone has a say in the placement of infrastructure and systems.

We can not just through together a bunch of cities, and people, we must have a sense of what the people in the communities desire. We are bringing together ideology of past and present which will shape the future. We must communicate with each other to bring a solid plan to fruition. We must discuss with all people the plans, hopes, dreams, wants, desires, needs and understand the boundaries of possibilities.

We can build great things for peace. We can build magnificent structures that can bring awe to the world. As we understand peace, we are understanding the possibilities of the world. When we hope beyond the current understanding of the world and reach into the understandings of tomorrow, we will find new heights of peace. There is a world out there that we have not made yet that produces dreams beyond our current understandings.

These understandings are known as miracles. For God, there are no miracles. Miracles are things that transpire and can not be explained. When we reach the pinnacle of peace, miracles become possibilities and then the end of miracles will then come into being. This is the reality of peace.

Peace can provide much when we dare to reach for it. This courage is indeed rare yet not unheard of. Few people have been able to reach out and grasp the totality of peace. For many, the one person that has done that is Jesus Christ. He is the lone person yet he is the pathway of righteousness that we must follow. He gave us everything we need to be as he has shown us in all the deeds he performed.

This is the capacity for peace that existed. We have examples of peace that are present in the world. Do we have the courage to grasp onto the ways of peace? How do we get there? We have a chasm of understanding to forge through to merge the world. This is the duty of the people to ensure peace is obtained. We will have many chores to do.

Momentum and Instigators

 

Over the past few years we have seen an increase of rhetoric. This is a situation where the moments of influence fuels the fire of rhetoric. People on social media sending out half truths and opposition of the establishment are claiming to be fighting freedom yet they are only proving that they are the enslaved as well.

The entire message of reality is that each and everyone has the responsibility to act and be free. Being free includes the responsibility to understand how the world interacts in reality. The spreading of half truths and biased opinion further solidifies hatred and enemies. True freedom is being able to stay engaged peacefully with your enemies, opposers, those who are unwilling and those who are unable at certain moments to understand peaceful processes.

Each of us has a responsibility to understand not just oppose and quickly grab onto any “spark” of information that points to an “alternate fact”. Peace takes great effort, great courage, great heart, great sacrifice, and great understanding of others. That is the momentum that needs to take root.

What we are getting is the complete opposite. We are getting people who are quick to decide what is “truth” and what is “really happening”. We are getting instigators who are venting the frustrations of the world in blind fury. The target of frustration becomes the “they”. When all the fury is over the truth is often buried with the dead. As we look back, it is easy to draw connections and build conspiracies. The truth is more of the fact that no one organization would have ever been able to orchestrate such a string of events. For example the war in Ukraine:

There is little doubt that Putin wanted to ensure Ukraine was a better ally/friend to Russia. How this turned into a war is a series of mistakes more than a series of carefully calculated events. For many that is a difficult reality to accept because it points to the fact that there is actually no controlling element at hand.

The only avenue of control that anyone should actually be worried about is their own personal sphere. As your world expands to wanting to control or inform others, you take on further responsibility to understand in greater depth. 

 

Times of turmoil

We are certainly in a time frame of great unease. As we look around for leadership, there is no better place than in the mirror. No one wanted a pandemic, no one wants to restrict the life we had known three years ago. However, in times of turmoil, strong measures must be taken to ensure the safety of all – not just the few.

To stand up for freedom and choice, you have to make sacrifices. You have to act with respect, responsibility, care and in all reality you must act selflessly. Those who stand, work and pay the price to ensure that peace is maintained are worthy of paise due to their sacrifices. However, we should never glorify war because it is nothing to be glorified.

Knowing the cost of peace is to understand the need to do what needs to be done, even when that means doing what will cost your life. Defending freedoms is not defending choice, it is defending the safety of others. We have vaccines, they have proven to work. That is why we are living to one hundred years on a consistent basis now.

Being pissed off about wearing a facemask, getting a vaccine, lockdowns and bubbles is understandable, everyone is. You want to protest to fight for freedom, protest about those who work in human trafficking, protest those who sell drugs to your children, protest those who organize crime, protest those who walk in the shadows to steal, protest those who sneer, mock and walk past the down trodden, protest those who only look out for themselves while their neighbour is crying out for help.

Protesting the vaccine, wearing a mask and other pandemic realities is only making the world take one more step towards complete chaos and war. We need to understand the implications of the pandemic, we need to work to ensure peace is the goal, we need to work to patient and caring with each other. The pandemic will end, The fight for peace will not and those that work to destroy our peace will still, sell drugs, sell our children, steal from us, cause harm in every manner possible to gain for themselves. We have a world worth every effort we can muster. All we need is to have the proper focus. Peace needs everyone to work or we will have none. At this point, we can go either way. Please be patient, please be careful with each other, please put your efforts to ward off what is truly the threat of freedom – the pandemic and those who operate criminally.

View of Peace

 

For those fortunate enough to see Earth from space, many of them speak about a moment of clarity. That clarity is also a complexity of being alone, we only have one home yet, we are all in this together and so much is lost in the struggles we make. The quotes, observations and thoughts that are inspired by seeing the Earth floating in space can grab the essence of peace. Each of us are ultimately alone, living with others, struggling to find our way and hoping for a better future.

I used the word our because it represents both me and us. As I go about this research, there can be no areas that is not a source of interest. To me, the duality of me and us, alone yet together; these factors are integral to every piece of information and thought I encounter. For example:

How a person views themselves is impacted by where they live, the language they speak, the colour of their skin, the way they spell words, the clothes they wear, their health, their job, their hobbies, their families, their chosen spirituality, even the time period they live in will impact who a person is. Then each of us will have to be aware of how others perceive us. Then there is the reality of the person that we want to be and the person we are.

Searching for Peace

 

Searching/studying peace, the focus of my interest rests in the interplay of the individual with society. Questions such as how personal peace relates to societal peace and the impact of society on the individual.

To do this I am looking at situations that individuals who have/are gone through war and those who have and are transitioning from jail back into society. From there I will seek to understand the societal experience with the struggle to transition through violent and unpeaceful moments towards peace.

 

A sample of questions that arise from that focus are:

What do each describe peace to be?

What are the barriers to achieving that peace?

What strategies do each use in that pursuit?

How do each see their impact on society as being?

How do each see the impact society has on them?

 

In the answers I am thinking there will be a universe of elements that factor in the equation to build/destroy peace. Racism, culture, religion, environment, education, economics, where a person lives, job/career and gender are some examples off the top of my head.

 

From there I am wondering how to collect data.

I will have to seek out those who are currently experiencing the situations described. I will ask similar questions as stated above. These questions can be in person or in a written format.  I can also develop a rating scheme for each such as a 0 to 10 scale. For example, on a scale of 0 to 10, zero being negative and 10 being positive. I can also ask on a similar scale how much effort each are putting into their goal of peace with 0 being no effort and 10 being every thought and effort possible. If I were to give an example of such efforts, I would have to get participants to pick who they see as those being on that scale (either real or fictional) just to get a “sense” of the markers.

To gather the societal information, I can send out through mass media similar questionnaires as well as gathering data from reports on global indexes such as the Human Development Index.

 

Why am I looking at these two (war and jail) realities as opposed to cancer patients or just the average person who is also struggling with peace? I have chosen these two for personal reasons. I have lived both and struggle to ensure my own path stays peaceful. I am striving to understand the mental paths that help others remain on the path to peace and what pulls a person towards the reality of destroying peace. However, I do believe/hope that what I will discover will relate to anyone who is struggling with building peace.

At this very moment I am wondering if a case study is also a method I should pursue?

 

I am searching for peace within my own mind as well as for society. I can not do this alone so I made it my research.

Third party intervention

 

How to get warring factions to talk it out is a rabbit hole of peace. There are questions as to who is doing the invite, where are the talks being held, who is being invited, who will pay for the cost of these talks, why not let the war play out on its own and, there are even more questions as the topic/impact ripples in all directions.

When a discussion is actually agreed to be had, the next issue is what is going to be discussed. Not as easy as it sounds. Some will only talk with the mediator (shuttle diplomacy). Others will only talk about certain points such as, borders, why the other sides are the problem and we are the victims, why are these people at the table and not these people, the list of topics can get as simple as the menu for breakfast.

This leads to the saying “if you are not at the table, you are on the menu”. That saying is a cause of many problems and is also a source to understand the scope of peacebuilding. Peace is about everyone and everyone deserves a voice at the table. Many will stop peace building because of the impossibility they attach to such a concept.

One item of peace is to detach from the impossibility of peace and be comfortable with a certain unknown reality that is to be built. The reason we are at war is because we did not want to do the work of peace before. That is the absolute truth of it.

Now we have to acknowledge the failures we made and move together. It is easier said than done. We are often got up in the bravado of not losing face, of not showing weakness, of not fighting for a just cause and the cliches will go on. The unknown of peace starts with getting past your own shit first so that you are willing and able to allow the possibility of peace. You have to be open to peace, even when you may not understand what it will be.

If you get to that point of understanding a possible peace, the question of “what next” will follow along naturally.

Noli sinere malos insolentesque te vexare or Illegitimi non carborundum

 

Do not let the bastards grind you down. That is the loose translation of the latin phrases above.

Who are the bastards?

They are the ones that will stomp on your face and ask you to thank them for being so kind to you. They are also the ones that will be kind, offer help, and when the moment comes steal everything from you and disappear. They are the ones that spend more time to seek loopholes and cheats to get around safeguards of peace than it would take to be peaceful.

It is a dangerous job to work against such people. Not because they are often violent, it is because you will be in constant risk of actually being one of them bastards. You will risk the peace of the world, the peace of your self and loved ones.

The bastard are not always easy to spot since they are wolves in sheeps clothing. Also there will be times that each of us will also be the bastard without even knowing it. This interplay is the task of peace building. It is also my life’s work to understand and help the bastards to be peaceful. It involves going into the darkest areas of life to understand the mentality of the bastard as fully as possible. Many are lost in the battle.

I write about this interplay to keep my mind in check. If you have any questions please send a response in the area provided.

Evaluation of peace at this very moment.

 

The world is going through a time of uncertainty. More specifically, the people are. The planet may not be uncertain itself, if you believe in the Gaia theory. However, there is strong evidence that we are at a turning point in many areas of existence.

The evidence is the pandemic, increase in storms is another factor, military build up is also a factor and then there is the slow burn of weariness that is going on due to all these factors. In short, we could be completely fucked if steps/decisions are made to aggravate the current situation. One wrong move and the world will find itself in a global war. This is a reality which causes me great concern because it becomes more possible each day.

People all over the world are on edge, depressed, lost, and feel as if there is no control. Plus, there is a severe lack of trust in leadership and has been a severe lack of quality leadership for sometime on a global scale. At this point in time, we are in deep need for peaceful reflection and actions. What does that mean?

Not everyone can have an impact on a global scale. This leaves us with our own personal lives. Each of us must find ways to bring peace in life to our own minds and if possible assist others to do the same.

Leadership in peace

As I work through the focus of my research in peace, my mind spins into some dark places. With this spin is the base of what I am trying to understand. Basically it comes down to how the individual builds, manages and maintains their life in a peaceful manner towards a peaceful world.

How a person leads their life, views their life, brings thought to action, and how a person impacts the rest of society are all part of what I am seeking to understand.

Taking circumstances into reality, there are elements of life which fall outside of individual concerns and/or control. In the grand scheme we can not live anywhere else but this planet right now so get used it and you filter down from there. Also we have to understand that no two people will ever have the exact same set of circumstances or experiences.

These are tumultuous times. There are few if any places in the world that are in a stable situation. In times of such uncertainty, the need for everyone to exercise leadership is paramount. Each of us must acknowledge and perform to the best of their capacities the responsibilities of peace.

Leadership within our own lives is more important than what the common thoughts of who leaders are and how they lead. How each of us think and behave is of vital importance because we must rely on our own judgements first. This falls into the ethical questions of why we follow laws.

Do you follow laws because you do not want to get caught? Do you follow laws because you agree with those laws? Do you even care what the laws are? How does a person get to the point where it is okay to be a leader in human trafficking or corruption for examples?

I hope each of us finds peace in life. When I finish this portion of my research I will post those results.

Building a peaceful world

 

How do we build a peaceful world?

As we go down that rabbit hole, we are faced with many decisions. Currently we are being faced with those who are standing on the rights of personal freedom to choose to get vaccinations. This is the right of free will. Free to do what you want with your own body.

We have to get to the extremes so we can walk towards some middle ground. So with that, there are those that have indulged in the act of self-immolation (setting yourself on fire). Such situations bring us into a realm of insanity. For such a person there are no limits to what a person can do to themselves. Along that path will be the question of why any act a person takes upon themselves is illegal? If you want to inject bleach or not, well that is your choice. Such examples can go on for ever. Then there is the element of informed choice. This is why cigarette companies were sued even though many people chose to use their products. Again the list of examples here are endless. Now there are those that follow along blindly of their own free will. For example these are the people who will plead that they were just “following orders”. Again, the list of examples are endless.

As we walk towards an understanding, what we will run into is responsibility, leadership, accountability, control, harmony, trust and, other elements of peace. Also, the definition of what peace is/looks like can enter into the discussion.

Each of us will have limits of control and capabilities. For each of us, these limits are the everyday realities of life. As we move through life we will trade certain elements to gain others. Again, there are endless examples. Right now the trade is vaccination, freedom, security, choice and other elements.

As each of us makes these trades we must understand that it is not only the individual that is in play. There is a society that is impacted as well. As that relationship is contemplated, the base root of peace comes into play. That base root is the reality of being trusted as a person who will be a benefit to calm resolve. It means being a person who is able to listen, learn, assist, as well as being graceful when a mistake is made. There is also the element of every person who we hold up as a model of peace, that element is shown when a person gives more to others that they receive themselves.

The calm resolve is (in my understanding of peace) essential. We must know that we are here for those in the future. We must understand that choice does not always equate to freedom or vice versa. We also must understand that we are no where near perfect. Everyone is learning, everyone is going to make mistakes. When we witness others falter, we must hold out our hands with great patience and grace to assist them. When the time comes for our turn to falter, be gracious to those who offer assistance.

Intent

 As I am researching peace there is this element of human nature that is of outmost importance. That element is intent. For example when a person is employed and they have a boss/supervisor that causes others to feel inferior, stupid, worthless or in vulgar terms a fuck up, that boss/supervisor has intent to cause suffering, humiliation and or other harms.

Those that act in such a manner to bring an unpeaceful reality into being are made of the same cloth as those who can be perpetrators of evil acts. This is the slippery slope of peace. If a person is willing to lash out in such a manner, the depths of those acts is untold.

I know of this because I am guilty of being such a person. I understand the evil that can be caused by my actions. Such actions are why we have human trafficking, genocides, war, murder, corruption, theft, torture, etc….

It is a painful reality to understand that such a reality exists within me. However, I must use this knowledge to understand how we can avoid going down such paths of destruction. I must understand what indicators are present to inform us of such people. How do we control such thoughts, actions, desires? What outlets can we build to allow people to exercise such behaviour in a peaceful manner?

It is the famous Dr. Jeckell and Mr. Hyde complex that lives within us all.

Although many would defend their actions as frustration when they lash out. I too have made similar defenses. However the reality of frustration is no defense for causing harm to another. The responsibility of any person who seeks peace is to act in benefit of others always. Admonishment of others is just as effective using peaceful methods. Patience, courage, trust, loyalty, stewardship, integrity are components we must all strive to practice. 

Sometimes we fail, this is when we must work the hardest to ensure peace. It is important to act with those values when dealing with ourselves and others. It will take great effort to obtain peace. I believe we can. That is my intent knowing full well that I have the capacity to be an asshole. I am working to be that peaceful person I know is possible.

Jumping to conclusions

 

Ever have a discussion where the other person is always giving answers to problems you are facing? This happens very often in discussions of peace. What strikes me is that with all this knowledge why the hell is there so much hatred and anger in the world? For example, take any resume you find and it is almost a certainty that good communicator will be a descriptor on that document. If this were true, the world would be in way better condition in terms of communication than it is. In reality, the communication success sucks. This is the same issue as the cliché states that 80% of the population believes they are above average intelligence.

The wonder of peace is to be able and willing to live within the unknown or at least pursue the unknown. To do that is to always be seeking situations where you are learning, experiencing new realities and having the intelligence to say – I do not know/understand this.

We need to keep the impossible in our frame of scope. Having ready made answers or drawing too much on past knowledge/experiences will keep opportunities to a narrow window.