THE FREE WORLD GATHERS IN PARIS - JAN 11, 2015

Today the free world gathers in Paris.  They gather in solidarity against those who use guns to silence freedom.  

In numbers, the terrorists are few.  But they are angry and they are single-mindedly set upon a course that destroys lives and communities.  They thrive on fear as their reward.

As with any story, there are two sides.  There is the defiance of protests and marches such as these.  There are the words of condolence and outrage.

The other side of the story is less easy to speak of.  It is the great question of mankind from the beginning of time.  The biblical Cain and Able.  The killing of one brother by another because of jealousy.  The Bible is symbolic of course, but its message is real.  We humans have been killing each other forever.  FOREVER!

Terrorism will not disappear today because of Paris.  I doubt future terrorists will be moved by our outward act of defiance in the face of the great uncertainty that terrorism engenders--its unpredictability.

So how do we stop it?  Can we stop it?  Yes!

One day at a time.  One kindness at a time.  Tolerance of all peoples.  Efforts to dig deep until we unearth the real reasons for radical acts.  Listening intently to what they say, for at the core of their oft cancerous rhetoric is a message.

Do we as a civilization bear any responsibility for the terrifying world we live in?  Did not America invade Iraq without due cause?  Did not thousands of innocents die as a result? Do we not systematically kill radical leaders without due process of law? Have we not worked with Middle Eastern leaders when it was advantageous and then summarily deposed them when it was not?  What of Guantanamo and its many inhumane and unresolved issues?

To heal we must admit our own part in the cruelty of our world.  The innocents who died in Afghanistan and Iraq also have a say.  Those easily lead or deeply frustrated say it with mayhem.

This story is not about the bad versus the good.  It is the story of a world that twists its meaning to fit the moment.  It is easier to name a wrong when it is brutal and in your face--as in France this week.  It is harder when it is couched in political terms as a justifiable response to murderous acts.

We must stop retaliating for retaliation's sake. The march in Paris today is an act of defiance against terrorism.  It is peaceful.  The majority of our world wants peace.  Quiet. Security.  Kindness.

Let is act in self-defense, of course.  But beyond that, we must stop the killing.  Until we do, until we see the story in Paris as Our story, the story of civilization, little will change and soon we will live in armed camps, with fear in our hearts, until someone somewhere commits the final act and kills us all.