Keeping Pace
" Hate is not inborn; it has to be constantly cultivated, to be brought into being, in conflict with more or less recognized guilt complexes. Hate demands existence and he who hates has to show his hate in appropriate actions and behavior; in a sense, he has to become hate. "
-- Frantz Fanon
It is the late night/ early morning hours, and I have not been able to get to sleep. Usually, reading late at night helps, and I have read another 199+ pages of "The New Evil: Understanding the Emergence of Modern Violent Crime." It is the second of a series by Michael Stone, this time with Gary Brucato.
The authors do not use "evil" in a religious sense. It is a reference to crimes so violent and cruel that the average person, not about a moral account book in the sky, but the harsh, cold reality about humanity. But it is not somehow limited to those we identify as mass murderers in a "legal" context. It is why Camus wrote, " We are faced with evil. I feel rather like Augustine did before becoming a Christian when he said, ' I tried to find the source of evil and I got nowhere. But it is also true that I and a few others knew what must be done if not to reduce evil at least not to add to it'."
The new book does not cover terrorism, warfare, or organized crime, as they are outside of the authors' work. Yet I know, for example, that the murder of Samantha Woll was evil. It was violence resulting from ignorance and hatred. Spinoza noted that ignorance was the mother of cruelty. And we see ignorance and hatred gurgling up around much of the globe.
What twists the mind of a human being tp the point they will carry out a plan to kill innocent people? I saw two news reports on Mohammad Deif, who is said to be behind the attack on Israel. Both reports noted that his wife and child were killed when Israel was attempting to kill him years ago, and that he has planned his "revenge" ever since. Clearly, he had hated Israel before his family members' deaths.
Both reports compared Deif to Usama bin Laden.This was at the same time the attack on Israel was being called their 9/11. That got me thinking about how the 2011 raid where bin Laden was killed used the operational name "Geronimo," and his great grandson's testimony to the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, where it was revealed that bin Laden was "Geronimo."
Geronimo was an Apache shaman. In 1851, Mexican soldiers attacked his village, killing his mother, wife, and children. For decades, he would vent his rage on settlers -- at first Mexican, eventually Americans -- that were moving into his people's territory. This resulted in the Apache - US campaign, which involved 25% of the US military searching for the elusive small band of Apache Indians.
There were scenes of Israeli forces on the edge of Gaza, preparing for the eventual invasion. It is likely that many of these people will be injured and/or die during the invasion and occupation. And scenes of the bombing of buildings that were deemed targets. I immediately get up and start pacing, trying to set emotions aside and view the situation objectively. This is a struggle, because I know some of the Israelis in uniform will die horrible deaths if they invade, and that there are human beings not connected to Hamas are buried under what was once a building.
I do understand both violence and emotions. I've had numerous family members and friends murdered, and others seriously assaulted. I get the desire to get revenge. Been there, done that. I also know that despite the belief common among people that they can control violence, that is an environmental mrage. Violence is addictive, it limits thinking, and takes control of people. At the same time, it can be necessary for self-defense.
I continue to pace. Soon it is the next day, and the news reports are focused on a terrible mass shooting, double in nature. I pace and it's the next day. I will avoid swimming in the Sargasso Sea of arguments on the internet about war and peace, mass shootings, and other topics which, in a healthy society, could be discussed -- even debated -- without insults being slung. Obviously, I can not prevent this dangerous trend, but I will not add to it.
Instead, I will shell an enormous bag of beans that my son brought in from the garden. By late tonight, I will have a kettle of bean soup, made the way I like it. I'll eat that and continue reading.
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