VIOLENCE

This is the ultimate weakness of violence,

It multiplies evil and violence in the universe.

An eye for an eye will only make the whole world blind,

Violence is the last refuge of the incompetent,

It doesn't solve any problems,

It takes a touch of genius,

and a lot of courage to move in the opposite direction.

Sometimes you have to pick the gun up to put the gun down,

Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent.

Learn this now and learn it well,

Like a compass facing north,

A man's accusing finger always finds a woman, Always,

You remember that, Mariam.

I object to violence because when it appears to do good,

The good is only temporary,

The evil it does is permanent.

To paraphrase several sage,

Nobody can think and hit someone at the same time,

Those who make peaceful revolution impossible,

Will make violent revolution inevitable.

If somebody says 'I love you' to me,

I feel as though I had a pistol pointed at my head,

What can anybody reply under such conditions but that which the pistol holder requires? 'I love you, too.'

Physical love is unthinkable without violence,

Poverty is the worst form of violence,

This calls for a very special blend of psychology and extreme violence,

Collective fear stimulates herd instinct.

And tends to produce ferocity toward those who are not regarded as members of the herd.