Open Discussion: What is the #1 solution to healing the world?

 Photo by Stephen Thomas

Alright, people! Let’s figure out the solution to fix all the problems in the world! *Cracks a whip*

I think one of the biggest problems is that we tend to see people with different beliefs and societies as non-human. They are “other.” And I think that we do this because it makes war a heck of a lot easier. I’m not a soldier (so take this with a truckload of salt) but I imagine it would be harder to kill someone if you recognized that they have a family and a life, just like you.

However, by dehumanizing our opponents we’re essentially saying that they’re not as important as we are. Now I know that many people can (and do) feel compassion for all creatures, but a HUGE portion of people lack empathy.

As a painfully recent example, take a look at the reactions to what’s happening in Japan. Many, many people have publically said on Facebook and Twitter that Japan is getting what it deserved, because of the whole Pearl Harbor thing. (They’re forgetting the two nuclear bombs the USA dropped on Japan afterwards, but that’s just a tiny detail. </sarcasm>)

I’m sure they’d feel quite differently if it was their city that was destroyed, or their friends and family who were missing. But because they don’t see the Japanese people as being like “them,” there is no empathy.

To wrap things up, I’d like to share a dream that I had many years ago. I think it encapsulates some of what I’m trying to say here. (This is taken almost verbatim from my dream journal, btw.)

I was standing in front of a massive sheet of light yellow paper. The paper was so big i couldn't see the edges of it. An old man was using it as his canvas, painting a landscape. I looked closely at a painted tree and I saw leaves swirling as if blown by the wind, and glittering with hints of gold.

As I investigated his painting, he grabbed a large round brush and dabbed three splotches of blue on an empty space. As I watched, the splotches changed colors and shape. Then the painter spoke up.

 

"A man died yesterday."

I was shocked, but kept watching the splotches of blue. As I watched them stretch into multi-colored clouds, I said, "I'm sorry. Was it anyone you knew?"

The painter paused for a moment, then said, "We lived under the same sky. And in that, we were brothers."

That’s was the entire dream, and I hope I never forget it.

 

So, what do you think is the #1 solution to healing the world? ^_^

 

Open Discussion posts really ARE open for discussion! You can talk about whatever you want. The question is just to spark your synapses.