Constant Opinions

Phew! I found a very interesting question posed by Indian President Dr. Abdul Kalam over on Yahoo Answers. He wants to know how to end terrorism.

I got clued into this one over on Digital Journal. I can’t even read all the answers listed on Yahoo - well over 15,000 now. I just don’t have that kind of free time in my life.

I gave this some thought during the day rather than answering it immediately. It’s not an easy question to answer, after all.

Obviously there’s no quick answer. Any solution will probably take a few lifetimes to occur. Maybe I’m pessimistic on this one, despite my overall optimism in life, but I feel that these things run too deep to be changed quickly.

I know religion is a major excuse for terrorism. Killing in the name of God, no matter how often a religion preaches against such behavior. Unfortunately many religions have passages that can be misinterpreted as allowing or even encouraging such murders.

Encouraging religious tolerance is going to take a long time. I know many people who consider religious tolerance to be a negative thing. How can this be changed?

Of course many wars have been fought with religious excuses but really have more to do with land and economics. There are plenty of people who feel that these are the real reasons for the “War on Terror.” You can argue that one back and forth.

There is far too much hatred on both sides. I’ve heard people say they think all Muslims are terrorists and so it’s okay to hate or kill them. I’ve never understood that belief. I’ve always felt that the average person is far more interested in living their own life in peace than in ruining the lives of others.

Tolerance all around is very important. If we can’t stand the differences between different peoples, terrorism will continue.

There is also the matter of people tolerating terrorists within their own religions. This is probably particularly challenging, since in many places expressing disagreement is to risk death.

As individuals, we need to look at our own actions. If we aren’t tolerant of those around us as well as those far from us, both physically and psychologically, hatred can too easily fester into terrorism. Ending terrorism requires a change of heart and for those who live in places where terrorism is encouraged, the courage to speak out against it.

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