What can we do to stop people harming each other?

In my past post I defined violence as the outcome of problems that cannot be solve anymore by peaceful means. It is rooted from collective frustrations and grievances. It is because of the deprivation people felt. It is because of the inequality that is very prevalent in an area or between people. Violence is inflicting pain to others or deliberately hurting others. With these meanings and definitions at hand, what can we do to stop people harming each other?

Like what I also mentioned before, one venue where violence is prevalent is in politics but I think the solution for violence must also come from this institution. Since they seem to start most of the violence then they must end it too. One of the most atrocious venue of violence there is probably war. War is waged by states and they can end it too. Another way for politics to solve violence is through equal allocation of resources or goods to the citizens or to the people living in the state. It is their duty and by, even just trying to, fullfill them the rate of violence will definitely lessen.

Although, at the end of the day we must see that we compose politics. We are the ones who are playing it. We still have the last say. At the end of the day politics did not fail but rather we, people, failed. We can stop people harming each other by thinking that violence is a bad thing. It does not lead to anywhere and it is not a very good tool to achieve our wants or needs. It is also a thing that is heavily consequenced.

We can stop harming each other by making each other of the effects that our actions is having. All our actions cannot be good. We must show to everyone that we are hurting other people by doing violent acts. We must show to everyone what violence can lead to. We must show to everyone how violence hurts many people and how much it hurts.

We can stop harming each other by thinking that everyone of us is equal and is a brother. If we think in this way then we will hesitate about hurting someone who is like us. We can stop people harming each other by embracing peace instead of war. I believe that people can be peaceful. They can choose to live peacefully and that there is no such thing as human nature wherein the nature of men is evil. We can stop people harming each other by letting people know concepts like peace, brotherhood, and love.

Human Nature

In my previous Philsophy classes it was always mentioned that man is the sum of all his actions. Although, we have differents actions thus there are different men. What is our human nature? Are we good or bad? Neither or both? Is there such a thing called human nature. According to those Existentialist philosophers there is no such thing as human nature. We must do things not out of our nature but because we chose to do it. Then, following this course of thought, human nature is neither and both good or bad. Neither because it may not exist and both because there is no inherent nature but we chose what that nature would be. If we chose then the existence of both good and evil human nature is possible. I do not think that there is such a thing called human nature and that is why I think a good and evil is the 'nature' of the human person.

People think they are good if they are holy. But what is holy? We cannot be Jesus for every individual is unique. Therefore, other people considered themselves holy when they teach the words of their god and when they act the way their god told them to. People think they are good when they are above of others. They are above in moral because they do such things. They are above in social status because they have more money. They are above because they are different and feel superior from the others. With these things, I think people should not think that they are good because of such. Peopel think they can do good when their intent will help others, for not only temporarily but for some time.

There are many good people out there but their goodness are being hindered. People are prevented from doing good when they see no goodness in their environment. Like the child warriors, children have the capacity to do good but without proper guidance all they will want to do is to hold armaments and kill who they deemed enemies. They are also prevented in doing good when they lack the resources. An example is that you want to donate your old clothes in a far away place because they need clothers immediately but you do not have a car to take them and deliver them thus your opportunity of donating was extracted from you. It is not because you lack the will but it is because you cannot complete your resources. Lastly, they are prevented in doing good because there is such litte incentive. Sometimes, people work for incentive.

No conflict is justifiable. Politicals leaders should think about this that there are no justification for conflicts especially with conflicts like total war. World leaders should be able to indentify the problems or the source of a problem that they are facing. They can promote peace and end global violence by practicing peace and non-violence also. They can promote peace and strip-off peace by learning from history. Lastly, they can change everything if they are willing to hear such teachings.

Internet, Web 2.0, and Social Networking

The Internet is a part of my everday live but I guess not as much as some of my friends for I am still able to not go online for a day or for a week. I must admit though that I have this need to check of my email every day if there is school and once every two weeks if I'm on a break. The Internet indeed changed my life once I had the power or capacity to access it. Back in high school I do not an easy access to the Internet and that is why I rarely access it but now in college everywhere I go is wifi zone or I just plugged in my broadband and I hava Internet access already. As a university student, the Internet is very vital for my survival and a good example is this course which requires us to post blogs.

Indeed, Internet affects the everyday lives of people. How many people go online per day? How many people are already members of the various social networking sites? How may twits or reblog are there per day? How many 'Like'-d your status this day? Internet is also used by people for research, for academics or just for anything. Mainly, people use the Internet as a communication tool. They use it to talk with people that are in the far reaches of the Earth for them. They use it to spread words. They use it to send a message or post a video. They use to be heard. The Internet affects the everyday life people because it is like society in the way that it affects how people act or perceive things. Society has this power to dictate or influence people on how one should act and Internet, already, has this power. Internet, also, has the capacity to spread and introduce different cultures to people and because of this people becomes aware or acquire other culture.

Like what I stated above the Internet had all those effect over me. The Internet made my life easire by helping me find materials for research with just a click away. It also introduced me to new cultures in terms of new different genre of songs, fashion, new technological devices, and the likes. The Internet affected my life by making me closer to the people that are far, distance wise, from me. We can now spend time chatting which is more cheaper than calling and we can see each other through webcams.

Web 2.0 is a great help if we use it a good way. Like now it is used for easier research about things by this way of Google. Then we can also disseminate messages by using blogs or posting videos. For development, that is such a great tool because it can help us to make people aware about what is happening in the world and about issues like the so-called digital divide. Web 2.0 can also help us, if not to close, maybe to make the digital divide narrower. It is by making the world aware that there is such a thing and there are ways to solve it.

In Web 2.o there is the birth of those things called social networking and one of the famous sites is Facebook. Is it good or bad? It is good in a way that it really makes you connected to your friends. It is good because it helps you to make new friends. It is good because it offers a mode of entertainment. Although, it is not perfect and it has its bad side too. It is bad when you offer too much information or when its seems that you are bared to the web. It is bad because it can lead to addiction that can make you forget your priorities. Like anything in the world it has its own good and bad side, it's just a matter of control and prioritizing.

Why does politics turns to violence?

Violence is everywhere around us and it is sad that it seems that it is becoming a norm. For me violence is done because of unresolvable conflicts. In one of my class it is mentioned that violence is caused by deprivation and collective frustration of people. It is a mean to solve problems that cannot be addressed anymore by peaceful means. Violence is hurting other people, it is inflicting pain to others.

One venue that violence can be seen is in politics. Why does politics turns to violence? What is violence in politics?

Most of us can see violence is politics through wars, especially hot wars like World War I and the likes. Although, those are not the only violent acts in politics. There are many more for politics is almost in every aspects of our own lives.

Politics can do violence when politicians abuses their powers, not only politicians but every powerful person. When they use their power to hurt or oppress other people it is violence done by politics. In the local scene the most controversial issue, one that we are always being criticized about, is the extrajudicial killings in our country. It is not war but it is, clearly, violence done because of politics.

There are many issues like extrajudicial killings that are being done that concerns politics. But then again we are more aware of violence when it is depicted by war. In the United States to wage war the Congress must approve of it. Then it is clear that political leaders are the reason why wars are declared. War is violent. There are many killed army men and sometimes the collateral damages are high. Collateral damages are the innocent civilians that were affected by war.

Politics turns to violence for their own gain, take for example the War on Terror. The United States justify the violence by saying that it is for protection against terrorism. They say that they turned to war to stop nuclear weapons and to stop terrorism. Honestly, where and what are their up to now? It seems that the reasons are not enough to continue anymore.

Politics turns to violence because they think it is their last solution for a situation. War is justified when all peaceful means are exhausted. Although, can war ever be excused? I do not think so especially nowadays. It is because I think humans have already forgotten how to be rational and how to care for each other.

These days, politics turns to violence because they think it is the fastest course to achieve their goals and that is just so wrong.

How can we end poverty?

Poverty is one the reasons why there is inequality in our world. Some people are richer and some people becomes richer. This is mostly the way of the world nowadays. It seems that the poor remains to be the poor. We can clearly feel the division between the rich ones and the poor ones. We create divisions such as material acquirement and labels such as 'first world countries' vs. 'third world countries'. This is not really fair and the world is never fair. Although, with the heightened concerned for humanity and humanitarian acts there are a lot of talks and discussion about creating solutions to end poverty.

How can we end poverty? We need, first, to create a dialouge wherein we can describe what poverty is. We need first to identify who are the poors one and who, also, are the rich ones. We need to this so we will know who we must help and who can help.

We must create avenues to address the issue of poverty. We need this to create a conciousness and make everybody aware that poverty is rampant in our world nowdays. We need to tell the people, especially the unelightened ones, that there are people that are poor and are not well-off. We need to this for us to share our thoughts on why there is poverty and by this we can trace the things that contributes to poverty.We need to this so that we can abolish those things or compromise with them so that poverty will be lessen.

We must create or support existing organizations, groups or NGOs that the main aims is to help the poor or create a narrower distance of the poor from the rich. We can support them by man power, spreading their advocacies, donating our money, and many more other ways.

We can end poverty by expanding and stretching our hands to those who we think are not that well-off. We can do this in a national level like by donating to charities or NGOs or even on individual level by giving food to your poor neighbor.

We also need to spread education because poor education leads to a poor life. Education, rather than money, will go a long way to impede the fast spread of poverty. Education mught be a slower process or a process wherein the results we want is slower to achieve but at the same time it is also the method which is more stable and will last forever.

Poverty is really hard to end especially now that it is very widespread but if we all help out then it can be possible.

How is the world organized economically?

If the world is organized economically then the world is divided economically. We are organized or classified by what our economy is. There can two types of states, the rich ones and the poor ones. How sad is that? It is true that we are organized economically, it was not asked to be done but it was done. We are classified by the state of our economy, if it was highly industrialized, developing, or developed. They can also organized us economically through our gross domestic product (GDP) or by how much debt we have. We can be organized economically by seeing and comparing the standards of living of citizens of every state. We are highly organized by our economy. Our economy can say if we are one of the strongest state in the international arena or just one of those insignificant countries that are being given aid to.

In the world of economy the name G7 is very popular. It is a group consisted of six states which are France, Germany, Italy, Japan, United Kingdom and the United States. They discuss about economic policies and issues. For me, if we organized the world economically, they are on the top of the pyramid. Rich states, I think, do not think about the world being organized economically. They are more interested with the powers that are incorporated by their economies.

The great power the United States is set apart economically because they are the so-called hegemon. By now, following the argument the if we are organized then we are divided economically, we can say that even if we are divided economically we cannot deny that we are now interdepent economically speaking. This is because of globalization. Our economies became intertwined and even if the United States is set apart their recent economic recession is felt by everyone.

By organizing ourselves economically we must see that there is inequality, especially with the distribution of resources. We cannot deny that we are organized economically because we see ourselves and identy ourselves by what our economic status is. We already defined and organized that way.

What is the future of nation states in the age of globalization?

In this age of globalization many things have change. Our technology to the way of our living have changed a great deal. Although, we cannot say if our change was for better or worse. It might, actually, be both. Nation states are part of our everyday living and we are very aware of them. We have a full sense of what they are. In this age of globalization being aware of them as 'entities' is very important.

What is their future in this age of globalization? I do not fear that in this age of globalization wherein there are many attempts of integration of, not only economies, but also culture that there would be a deterioration of their sovereignty. They should not fear the loss of that because that would always be innate for nation states. Thus, in this age of globalization there would be nation states that would come up with norms or customs that are somewhat the same with other states.

Nation states can use globalization for pushing or increasing their gains. They can also use globalization as a way for peace. Through globalization they can easily show other nation states their customs, beliefs, ideologies and other things that can help them to be understood by other nation states. They can use globalization to gain support or form alliances. The future for them is as bright as they can imagine. They just need to use the tool, which is globalization in this case, creatively and wisely.

This age of globalization brings good future for the nation states but it can also bring bad things to them. Other nation states might see this as an opportunity to exploit weaker nation states. Others seemed to be getting left behind, with the fast paced world brought by technology and machines some nation states do not have the capacity to join the bandwagon. Others use globalization not a tool for peace but an excuse for waging war towards others.

We must see globalization the right way. We should not abuse the power given off by globalization. If we remember these then the future of nation states in the age of globalization is very bright.

Do colonialism and slavery belong to the past?

Colonialism and slavery are things of the past for me. They do not belong anymore in these days. They do not have any use anymore. Colonialism is very outdated for our world. Thi cannot continue nor happen. States are sovereign and they will not allow other states to colonize them. With the advent of nuclear weapons and making alliances, colonialism will be very hard to materialized. It is not the way of the world anymore. States do not colonized other states. If they want to "help" other states they can now simply give aids. If they want to use the resources of other states they can now simply draft treaties and such. If they want to influence other states the media is easily accessible to everyone. No one need to colonized because the things they want to achieve through colonialism can be easily achieve with other means in these days of globalization.

Another thing is slavery. This act should never belong to any time line. The creation of civilization and societies one of the requirements is having a hierarchy. Then, it is no wonder why slavery exist. It does belong to the past and should be left in the past. We have no use for it anymore. Anyways, people, like in socialist or communist states, do work for low wages. We do not slaves anymore. Also, there are technologies that can negate the need for slaves.

Why do we obey?

In our everyday lives we are conducting ourselves under the law and rules and regulations. There are many kinds of law like our constitution and some like religious law. No matter what kind they are we obey them. We obey them because, like for the constitution, we do not want to receive the consequences given to those who disobey the law. For the other kind of law such as religion we obey because, maybe, we believe in the concept of heaven and hell. For cultural law, we obey it because we do not want to be stigmatized or shunned by our society. Many obey rules because they benifit from it and do not want to take in the consequences given to those who will disobey them. We obey law because we are afraid to disobey them. Law is conducted and regulated by the government. They can also exact punishments for those who will disobey it. We obey the government because it is a very powerful body. They have the power to tell us what our limitations are.

We are oblige to obey the government of a certain country because we are citizens of that certain country. We have our rights but at the same time we have our duties and one of them is to abide by the law. We are required to obey the government because it is what expected from a good citizen. We are oblige to obey it because the act of following them is part of the idea of having a good and progressive country. We are oblige to obey because there are penalties if we disobey them. We are oblige to obey it because it was they order us to do. We are oblige but we are not aware of the idea of obligation and we obey the government because of facts such as love and respect for the country.

Although sometimes we ask ourselves if a government is worth obeying. There came a time that Martial Law prevailed in our country and in that time many Filipinos felt that they must make a stand and refuse to comply to the government. When the government is oppressing the people that causes the igdination and justification for disobeying the government. Only one type of government deserves our obedience andd it is the good government. A good government deserves our obedience. With a good government we do not feel oblige to obey them but rather honored to obey them.

Why is the world divided territorially?

Territory is said to be one of the core elements of being a state. According to Merriam-Webster dictionary territory is a geographic area belonging to or under the jurisdiction of a governmental authority. If we follow the thought of this meaning then we are divided territorially because we being governed by numerous authorities. Our territory is defined by our government. Territory is not only defined in land but also in the seas.

Another reason, I think, we are divided territorially is because it is more convinient that way. If there is no division then we would need a central authority to govern us. Having a central authority will be so much taxing and it might even fail. Nowadays, governments are having diffuculties governing their country, even a small country is hard to 'maintain'. If this is happening then what more for a single government that will govern the whole world and all 195 states. We divide ourselves because it is easier that way. We are divided because, probably, no one wants to be the single authority of the world. Yes, states want to be the most powerful but not anymore with acquisition of territory and this is why no one will take the responsibility of being a single power of authority.

Also, we are divided because all states are sovereign. We already have chosen our territory or someone have already chosen a territory for them. We are divided as a respect and following the concept of sovereignty. We are divided and because of that we form our sense of independence, that we are different from those people across the other border. The world is divided territorially because sovereignty wants to preserve the identy of each states.

The world is divided territorially because we established our differences already. Such differences might be in our form of government, economy, or even our culture. Again, it would fall under convenience. We choose to be divided because we cannot see a stable world who is trying to be one. To be not divided territorially is to be one with others, meaning adopting only one form of government, economy, and even integration of cultures. This would be hard because we are only accustomed to the things we have now. A communist state cannot imagineitself to be federal and vice-versa. A rich state cannot see itself sharing its goods to very poor states who in return cannot give anything. And, lastly, cultures are very hard to impose to others. The world is divided territorially because being divided that way gives each state reasons to stay independent, free from foreign ruling, or even free celebrating and practicing their own cultures.

How do we find out what's going on in the world?

Globalization enable us to get information about the world. It pave the way to better communication and spread of news. So, how do we find out what is going on in the world? According to Debbie Lisle, we must be curious first and then find ways to sastify our curiousity. Nowadays, our technology gives us a lot of option on how to sastify our curiousity from newspaper to internet. What we do not know is just a single click away. These media let us in and let us know what is going on not only in a limited place but all over the world. Media is giving us the power of knowledge and it is because of that that we are much hooked to it. Media, especially the telivision, is very accessible these days and we are very fortunate for that fact.

Media makes us realizes that abstract ideas can happen or what it looks like, like love or war. It is because of media that we understand the impact of things such as wars, economic recession, or globalization. Debbie Lisle used the word 'express'. Media expresses the things and events that are happening in the world. Most likely, we based our reactions and action on how the media expresses the things in our world. Media can also sway public opinion especially with issues such as human rights. They have the power to show another thing rather than what is really happening. They can affect emotions easily and can also promotes ideologies faster. We interpret those what we see and it might put us to disadvantage rather than help us. Therefore, we must be critical viewers.

We must be critical. One reason is because the media cannot help itself to be biased. It is their nature to be biased. With these we must also know from which side, framework, partiality, or concepts does the media have. It is also safe to take in many medias to see a pattern about a news or just to search a paper or channel that you would much prefer. Another reason to be critical is media can be easily influenced or even tampered with especially by powerful forces like the government. During the Marcos regime all forms of media cannot show or promote anti-government sentiments. In China every channel is regulated by their government and thus all news must be leaning towards them. We must be critical to question if what we see and hear are really the truths.

All in all, media is one of the factors of how we form our opinions towards global politics and globalization. A pro-globalization can show only the big skyscrapers and the money being generated from globalization and an anti-globalization can show only the destruction of the environment and quality of life in a factory, based on what the audience sees that is where he or she will form an opinion towards globalization. Media is that powerful. It already exercised its powers with issues like war when it can easily be used as a medium for propaganda and such. In the end it might be that media is the one consuming us rather than the idea of us consuming media. We must be aware of the medias flaws. We must be always critical.

Is globalization good or bad?

If not for globalization I don't think I will be studying in DLSU and taking up International Studies. Globalization is a big part of our everday lives, from the clothes we wear, the food we consume, the public transportation we take, and the modes of communication we use. People nowadays could not dream a world where globalization does not exist. Globalization is a big chapter of the history of the world, it changes how the world turn. Globalization taught us how to be multi-cultural and this was achieve through, first, by loosening the economy and trade policies of states. Export products are much appreciated by states for they come in abundantly, readily and most of the times cheaply. Yes, globalization enable us to have cheap products and resources that we do not have. Globalization opens us to many possibilities and eventually towards "development".

On the other hand, many do accuse globalization for just being a new word for imperialism, capitalism, or even colonialism. Is it? I do not think so. It because states have that inate sovereignty thus ideas like imperialism and colonialism cannot exist because states cannot subject to this ideas without giving up their sovereignty. Globalization is very different. It is a choice given to a state. It is also being said that globalization is really an American phenomenon. I do not think so, given its name, I think globalization is a global phenomenon. It would not exist and continue this long if it is only limited to the West and its idea cannot be even embrace by the East. Its presence is proof enough that it is a phenomenon that is all over the world.

There was a talk a year before about the twilight of globalization and we also discussed that talk in our class. Most of us agreed that is not the twilight of globalization anymore because most of us believe that globalization is if not its highest point then nearly its highest point. Nowadays, I see that we are wrong. With the production of new technology and the rate of consumption that we do it is not hard to believe that it is just the dawn of globalization.

The biggest question with regard to globalization is if it is a good or bad thing? Who are the winners and lossers? Someone who is pro-globalization will probably say that everyone is a winner. Jobs for everyone and products for everyone. Economies go up and will go up. Third world states can use it for their advantages. Then someone who is anti-globalization might ask, at what cost? It is a question worth pondering upon. At what cost? These days we heavily feel the cost of globalization and it is the degradation of the environment. It is sad that for us to be wealthy we are willing to sacrifice our home. Maybe, movies like Avatar still have a point in saying that giving up everything for development is not worth it afterall.

So, is globalization good or bad? For me it is good but with the rate we are going, spoiling globalization like a brat rich kid, we need to set up limitations.

How do religious beliefs affect politics?

Seperation of religion and politics is said to be impossible, everyone is heavily affected by their beliefs towards their perceptions about politics. It is because religion was a part of our lives since ever. It is very hard to disregard religion and one's faith. Nowadays the relationship between the two is heavily felt here in our country because of the upcoming election. Candidates have platforms that include religion such as Aquino's. Kenneth Cauthen said that religious beliefs have moral and social implications and these can be reasons for the activities of citizens that have something to do with their religion and faith. A good example of this is a Catholic voting No agaisnt the legalization of abortion and divorce.

Religious beliefs can be used to create a cohesive bloc and this cohesive bloc can be used by politicians for their own gain. A good example is the bloc voting of Iglesia ni Cristo here in the Philippines, their leaders promote a candidate and they all vote for him. Politicians seek their side because they are big in numbers. Although, according to surveys bloc voting with regard to religious beliefs is not that successful because they do not really follow their leaders. Another example of disregarding religion for politics is in the United States when George W. Bush won. He is known to be a religious person and despite being conservative liberal America made him president. So, we really need to ask if religious beliefs can really affect politics.

It may be seen that religious beliefs is the source of the problem of wars, revolutions, or insurgencies like the one we have in Mindanao and the well-known Israeli-Palestinian conflict. It is not generally known but those conflicts did not really rose because of differences in faith. Again, we see that religious beliefs are not really big factors in politics. Sometimes, it is used to justify an action or push an ideology. The role of religious beliefs in politics can be studied further but as we now it is not a big deal unlike in the past eras where people are governed by their gods, goddesses, and religious doctrines.

Religious beliefs can affect politics but not in a big scale that can change the ways of politics. More than religious beliefs other factors will be consider first like the state, economics, and even globalization.

What happens if we do not think in human terms?

As a student that is taking up International Studies I was acquainted with the term Realism since my first year. According to the lectures and books that I have read realists are state-centric, thus, they are only concerned with what is happening and what can happen to the state. Although, after following such a school of thought people learned that there can be others, thus, the birth of other schools of thought like Liberalism. Since then people became more and more concern with people rather than just the state. We are now living in a world where the main concern is humans. The government of each state are now thinking and acting having in mind the welfare and future of humans. One good example is the history of security studies where in the past the focus is very narrow wherein only the state is the main concern while nowadays it is becoming wide wherein human welfare is a big concern.

If we do not think in human terms man will suffer a lot. It is because to think in human terms is to have a care for everything that the human encounter, a great example of that is the environment. In our world nowadays globalization is the bond that keeps us united and dependent with each other. What if we do not think in human terms in the globalization process? If we do not I see our planet becoming a big dump site of trash and human living will become unbearable. When we do not think in human terms we will disregard our environment. The industrialization era is a great example for what can happen to us. That era brought us high buildings, faster transportation, and it might even be the dawn of globalization but at what expense? The expense is the destruction of forest and the very hot issue of global warming. It is not wrong to be progressive but as I see it the way we progress have a lot of consequences for us and the future generation.

We need to start bringing back the habit of thinking in human terms. These days there are a lot of activities and advocacies dedicated for saving what is left in our planet. It is a good start but those advocacies need more people and power to push trough their plan, they need countries like America and many others more. Although, sadly, such powerful countries are one of the hindrances why environmental advocacies are hard to push through. We should start caring for our environment now. In this era of globalization we do not see clearly but the thing that being hurt the most is the environment and so we need to help the environment.

- Danna Olaya, 10721002

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