a nice quote to ponder…

The life of the nation is secure only while the nation is honest, truthful, and virtuous.

~Frederick Douglass

make love, not war!

I am a steadfast follower of the doctrine of non-violence which was first preached by Lord Buddha, whose divine wisdom is absolute…
—-the Dalai Lama

With the current developments happening with regards to the War in Iraq and the possibility of another War with the country of Iran, it’s been pretty heavy on my mind, this whole thing about War.

I keep asking myself, if I a leader like President Bush, would I end up like him and doing the same things? Or would I try my best to resolve certain world situations by peaceful means?

It just seems ironic, that people who consider themselves religious like President Bush, can wake up every morning and not feel guilty about sending a lot of people to War.

It would be perfectly logical to defend oneself if one is being threatened. But, I wonder if the circumstances unfolding is a result of us, the U.S. protecting ourselves and the world from further attack by terrorists, and possibly by a nuclear threat?

Something to think about, I know…

All I know is that humans have been a violent bunch of beings. Maybe it’s ingrained in us that to resolve any problems in our life that may threaten us, we resort to violence, death and destruction in order to protect ourselves and achieve resolve.

I for one, am peaceful by nature.

I’d like to think that I’m the same as the next person. And I’m assume that most people around the world aren’t looking for War, and would rather find a way to resolve any problems peacefully and without the use of violence.

Leaders, like President Bush, should be more responsible and more open to the people’s thoughts and feelings. With current polls suggesting that his approval rating is around 30% (the lowest in his career) and with more than 65% against the War in Iraq and sending 21,500 more troops… shouldn’t he listen to the American people?

I am almost positive that he would never send his own children to battle in Iraq. Why would he think it any different sending other people’s children to die in a foreign country?

Just something to think about…

is violence necessary in our modern world?

I’ve keep pondering over this question lately, being that the United States is at War in Iraq.

Me being a small fish in this big ocean of life,  I say to myself, who am I to have any opinions on the matter.  Maybe I should just go about my life and do what I can on my micro-level of existence.

Another part of me feels that any kind of violence is not justified.   But, Americans have justified retaliating against a mostly invisible army of terrorists…  retaliating against the evil that had been unleashed on American soil on 9/11.

I often read the philosophy and wisdom of great sages, of wise men such as Gandhi and the Dalai Lama, who say that violence only begets more violence, that hate can only create more hate.  That love is the only weapon against evil and hate.

So, as citizens of America, citizens of a global community who’s watching, how do we respond?  How do we demonstrate to our government that we are against the War in Iraq?  That we should not escalate by sending more troops, and cut our loses and bring our fellow Americans home.

As I see in the media, there are tens of thousands now protesting the War, around the country.  In my hometown, thousands of demonstrators marched in downtown to protest the War.  This tells me that people are fed up with it, and that we want our family members, or friends and loved ones home.

But, is violence necessary in our modern world?

Our leader(s) tell us so…  that the only way to fight the terrorists is to go to War against them.  But the problem is…  where are they?  They are hidden.  And no one has caught Osama Bin Laden yet, have they?  It’s been several years already.

We all want peace, I think…  If anything, both sides of any War will always want a peaceful resolve.

I for one, would always choose Peaceful solutions over Violent ones.  You just have to look around the world at certain regions who’ve been at War for decades and decades.  And you can see that War never ends, just as the Hatred never ends.

And as I see it, only Love can conquer Hate…

Hopefully, and one day, our world leaders will know this at a deep enough level that they will truly make an impact on the world in a most positive way….

hello world!

Hello everyone!

Chances are (and being that this blog is so new!) you’ve come here from my other site, carlosrull.com (in my mind’s zen garden).

This space will be reserved for my random thoughts and musings regarding yoga, eastern philosophy, buddhism and spirituality, not to mention metaphysical studies.

My minor in college was in World Religions, but I’ve always held an interesting in the religious and philosophical studies of Asia.

Please come back and visit if you have an interest in this area of existence. I’ll be sure to develop the site with more articles, photos and random thoughts.

Peace & Love,

Randomguru

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