Is turmoil the norm? I’m no history major or scholar so I don’t have the definitive right to answer that question, but in such tumultuous times as these, I can’t help but wonder if the idea of a relatively peaceful state of existence is just a carrot on a stick dangled in front of us.
We can chase after it all we want, we can come close, but we can never grasp it.
Even if I didn’t look at it in a worldwide view, in the self proclaimed “greatest nation on earth,” children and young adults are being told by political figures that, instead of protesting gun violence, they should learn CPR; Innocent Black men are still being killed by law enforcement, whom of which suffer little to no consequences; Puerto Rico still hasn’t been given proper aid; and I’m not even going to list the messes that 45 has created or exacerbated.
Despite all of this, there are those who put stock in the attainability of peace. All things considered, I am not too sure if that faith is well placed or not.
I know this sounds extremely pessimistic: that we are all just doomed to chase an idealistic version of what the human race could be capable of– but hear me out.
I don’t think that a consensus of any kind is plausible. Whether it be world peace or world chaos, both are as likely to occur as they are both entirely unlikely.
I think an idea that advocates for a time, no matter how long or short, in which mass suffering is limited (for I am of the opinion that there will always be some sort of suffering) and mass conflict is non-existent (for there will always be some degree of conflict as long as there are two sentient beings), is an idea worth striving for no matter how unrealistic it is.
What good is there to be gained if everyone accepted that there can not be long-term peace on a large scale? Would we still try and chase after peace unattainable? Or would we just look at the injustices around us and accept it with the reasoning “it’s just how it is?”
I am not saying we should delude ourselves into thinking that world peace, or any long-term mass scale peace is obtainable, and, therefore, spend our lives futilely trying to grasp the green light.
That would be an exhausting and, I figure, relatively unfulfilling life. Rather, I think the acceptance of the reality we live in will never be wholly peaceful, but we can limit the suffering of others.
The realization and acceptance that our actions, both directly and indirectly, can either increase or decrease the suffering of others and, in turn, affect the relative amount of peace in the world.
While one person is not responsible for the well being of the world as a whole, we are still responsible for our actions that affect the world and each other.
James Cantu
Opinions Editor