Does violence solve anything?

[Nev_Dull]

You live, breath and have obviously grown, so your thinking has always been externally influenced. Arguing that point is mere folly, as that is a simple fact, irrelevant of where you are from. Granted, you may be, (now or originally), from a country which suffers under the likes of a dictatorship regime, but even then the events you have known, even if violence was the norm, can harden your resolve against treading that path of normality which is inherent within your culture. The door always swings both ways, no matter what, where or how, and there are always multiple perceptions of each single subject. A person choices always lay at their own feet and theirs alone, but no-one has the right to decide what choice another is allowed to make. I'm born and bred in England, but that doesn't mean I have to agree with the accepted or legal normalities of this country.

Almost no one agrees completely with all the laws and policies of their government, but most people accept them and follow them. I agree with you that it is a good thing to question those policies and measure them against your own sense of morality. We need that to keep governments from leading us to places we don't want to be.

However, we also live within the confines of a society, in our towns, in our countries, and in our world. While there are distinct differences from country to country, all have some form of legal / moral system in place.

Society does indeed decide what choices we can make. Most modern societies do not allow citizens to kill or injure other citizens. They don't allow people to steal other people's property, drive blindfolded through school zones, or walk around with no pants.

You seem to be advocating anarchy as an acceptable alternative; the personal morality of the individual should have precedence over the laws of the society. And that just doesn't work. You're also right when you say the choice is up to the individual. You can choose to follow the rules of the society in which you live or not. But there are consequences if you choose not to follow the rules.

 

[MattF]

or walk around with no pants.

Is that the English or American pants?

 

[ralphchadkirk]

Is that the English or American pants?

We'd have no problem; they would.

 

[Nev_Dull]

Is that the English or American pants?

We'll split the difference and make them Canadian pants. And since it's -20C today, with a wind chill of -32, even the brass monkeys are wishing they had some pants.