Quote Originally Posted by Gandalf_The_Grey
There are people like yourself who accept atrocity and injustice because it's always been that way.....
this is probably where i'm supposed to get all huffy and spout a bunch of vitriolic nonsense about someone who would take the few words i've put out on the internet and believe they could intuit my entire world outlook by them, but that seems a bit too counterproductive for my current frame of mind. instead i give you this:

there is a big difference between recognizing atrocity and its causes and accepting it. governments, religions and similar institutions are not entities unto themselves. they are made up of creatures not unlike you and i. as such, they are prone to the same errors as you and i, but on a much more massive scale. in the end it is what the people will accept that determines what course these institutions take and the people are obviously quite content to allow atrocity after atrocity. repairing or replacing an institution will not alleviate societies ills as long as the people's mindset remains the same and you can't force people to be nice.

so, what is to be done? you can attempt to change the people by a series of mind numbing social programs. that has worked so well in the past, hasn't it? you can attempt to force people to act in a righteous manner by restricting their freedoms and allowing them to only do that which is right or you can rant and rave at them for their evil ways, both of these are pretty much sure fire ways of getting your head handed to you on a silver platter. morality cannot be legislated (no, i didn't make that one up), it can only be taught and the best way to teach is by example.

to live one's life as if you were constantly under a microscope, every deceit magnified for all the world to see. to give more than is taken. to accept with grace the curves thrown at you and repay them with kindness. to aspire to saintliness and expect not recognition, but derision. to do all this and more and still succeed in the face of an uncaring world, this is how we should all school the masses and help them evolve into a more ethical species.

excuse me now, my delusions are slipping and "locomotive breath" just came on. time to turn up the tunes.