the anit-peace

It is a sad reality of this world that some people are so ignorant that they view other beings as less than them. When this topic is mentioned we often, almost immediately, conjure up images of Hitler and his Nazis, or early American slaves owners, and we think, “Yes, people are stupid”, but seldom do we stop to think about our own feelings of superiority.

You might be one to sit there and think, “I do not believe I am better than anyone else”, and you may very well believe that, but when we boil everything down to the basics, we are all just as guilty as anyone.

As previously mentioned, the easy examples of “I am better than you” appear on a grand scale when we think of the Nazis and what they did to the Jews, Gypsies, Gays, and pretty much anyone else who crossed their paths, but the smaller scale feeling of superiority are much more difficult to see, and, as I have found, much more difficult to admit to.

Let us take for example the current world climate, or, rather, the war in Iraq. I should note that this is not an anti-war blog – it Is just an example.

While many call for peace and are advocating bringing the troops home, they will say in the same breath, “..but I support our troops”. This “support” as it is, comes from a feeling of superiority; the idea that Americans should not have to die. That is not to say all people think this way, but I would say a majority do.

We will look at the death of the 3,000 American troops and be absolutely devastated (as we should be) but rarely bat an eye at the death of a so-called “insurgent” or “terrorist”. Why is that? They are human. They are fighting for the same thing we say we are fighting for – freedom - , thus, there cause is, for all intents and purposes, just as noble, so why are we not saddened by their deaths?

Is it because we didn’t know them? I doubt it. Many people are saddened by the death of the American troops, yet they knew none of them. So, why then, do the deaths of the Iraqis mean nothing to us?

Because they are Iraqis. They are not “us”. We have a “right” to kill them because they are trying to kill Americans. It is justified. This is the feeling of “we are better than others” that I am talking about.

Another great example that is relevant to today’s world is the issue of immigration. I have talked about this before when referring to the idea of selfishness, but it becomes quite clear that even the most unselfish people still believe that “Mexicans” and taking jobs from “Americans” , as if to say that being born a foot north or south of a manmade, imaginary, line somehow entitles one to a job and not another.

This again is a feeling of superiority; the belief that Americans are better than Mexicans – and perhaps not even better per-se, but certainly more entitled to.


These examples may not be on a scale of WWII era genocide, but they are certainly much bigger than you an me. They are easy to see and even easier to remove ones self from. We can all sit back and easily say “I think Mexicans can have all the jobs they want, so I do not have this superiority complex” and in that sense you may be correct, which is, really, why looking at thing on such a grand scale is a complete waste of time, and is what brings me back to the idea of changing ones self for the betterment of the world.

Consider what follows, if you are one of those thinking, “HA! I do none of those things!”

A building is on fire. Inside the building, unable to escape, sits your mother and an unknown woman, of the exact same age. Who do you save?

What makes your mother more deserving to live than the other women?

Now, clearly this is an extreme example, and I am sure the answers could vary, but for most people, the obvious answer is to save Mom before anyone else. This is because we have an attachment to our mothers. Most people will see their mother to be more important than anyone else’s mother because it is their mother. This too, is a feeling of superiority – the feeling that one person is more important than another. I am certainly not saying we should all forsake our mothers, but hopefully I made my point.

Now, I could continue on, as my beliefs on this subject go even deeper to include ALL sentient beings, but much deeper into this becomes a religious issue, and for the moment I hope an understanding of what I am talking about has been attained.

This obvious feeling of attachment to one person over another based solely on superficialities is, in my opinion, what has lead us to the state this world is in today. Our belief that it is more offensive for an American to be killed than it is for someone of another country to be killed makes it much easier to justify war, because they are only Iraqis – Afghans – Germans – etc…

We tolerate the mistreatment of people from other parts of the world – like Darfur – when we would surely not tolerate the same treatment of Americans.

This must end. If we are ever to be a peaceful people, there is no choice but for us to make an effort to view all people as equal. Be they black, white, Asian – gay/strait – fat/skinny – rich/poor – Christian/Jew/Muslim/Buddhist/Atheist – we must change our attitude of indifference toward people based on the idea of them being “less than”.

We must realize that these borders we cling to so tightly, and put so much stock in, are irrelevant when it comes to the plight of the masses. Being born in America, or any other “free” nation, should not make one superior to another, rather, we should take the opportunity to use our wealth, prosperity, and liberty to aid in making this one world, one people, one race.