Exposure to violence makes it seem like a normal part of everyday life and it isn t. Without denying that it exists, we need to believe that human beings are fundamentally good, and that killing and hurting their own kind is an unnatural act. Given that, we can begin as a society to encourage attitudes and behaviors that are non-violent. Although aggression is quite natural, it seems we could encourage children to develop more positive outlets for it sports, drama, paintings, or writing, for example. These are non-violent ways of expending energy that also have positive benefits that include cultivating talents, developing copy mechanisms, and learning new skills. We must stop teaching that to our youth.
Education is the key element in becoming a non-violent society.
Many people who commit violent acts do not know any other means of keeping themselves alive. Drugs, prostitution, thefts, and verbal and physical abuse could be greatly reduced if people learned how to make a living, how to love another person, or how to express dissatisfaction without being destructive. Racism, sexism, and religious discrimination could also be reduced if irrational feelings of superiority were replaced with educated acceptance. When our peers, the television, movies, games, books, the internet, or any other source informs us that violence is a means of producing desired results, we need to firmly reject that notion and use our minds and hears to solve problems. It seems too easy at times to blame everything on a rock star, a movie, or a game.