Friday, February 6, 2009

Violence Begets Violence

Ruling by force might protect your home or even your country, but it only makes things much much worse for those without the power to protect themselves.  The only way we will ever destroy terrorism is with education and peacemaking.  It is impossible to police the world and the International Criminal Court (ICC) has clearly made things worse in Africa, much like the US has turned Iraq into the deadliest place on the planet.  This article in the New York Times shows us just how bad a situation the ICC has created with the LRA in the Eastern Congo.  My heart goes out to these peaceful villagers who are suffering in such horrific ways.  Our attempt to rule with violence has lead to their destruction by greater violence.  

There are no easy answers, but I do know that death on a cross is more powerful than fire from the sky.  The solution in Africa is not force, and it is certainly not passivity.  The LRA is no longer fighting for any reason other than that they have been pushed into a corner with no other reasonable alternative.  There has to be a peaceful solution to this crisis otherwise many more villages will continue to burn.  

2 comments:

Bill Cummings said...

"Death on a cross is more powerful than fire from the sky". Is that a Waluk original? Either way... that is a powerful concept... very true.... and one of my favorite quotes in awhile!

Chris said...

I read that in the NYT this weekend myself. Burns me up that the U.S. had a hand in that failed military offensive - had it been properly executed, some good might have come of it. What kills me more is that the Ugandan officials claim there was nothing that could be done to avoid the massacres - almost like Uganda is making the statement that they're content with the outcome. The ICC is also a failure of epic proportions.