Quote:
Originally Posted by Xerxys
What do you think about violence?
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My personal conclusion about violence is that it is the wrong choice. Call me a consequentialist if you want, but I've noted that violence never truly resolves what it was initially called on to resolve. Even in situations where violence is called upon to protect the innocent, it is always feeding a system of perpetual violence.
The basis of the social contract is rational conclusion that members of a social species will generally treat you the way you treat them. If you are rude to a person in line at the supermarket, that person is more likely to be rude back to you. If you shout at your parent, they are more likely to shout back. If you cut someone off driving, they are more likely to cut you off. This is backed up not only by collective experiential evidence but also anthropological systems of ethics and morality dating back before humans were even humans. The use of violence is inherently destructive and begets more violence, making the initial act exponentially more destructive than the initial act. As such, violence is the wrong decision.
Call it pragmatic pacifism.