For centuries, violence has been associated with the idea of fighting. The history books depict our past as a succession of wars and dominations, with a strong contender exercising its power onto a weaker opponent, usually in a violent form. We have also heard stories of heroes confronting that power with sagacity and bravery, emerging victorious occasionally. Yet, the ideas of strength and power to inflict pain, to hurt, or even to kill, have remained tied.
Actually, the access to tools that allow us to exercise violence against others has been popularized in recent years. Owning a gun is easier than ever. But it is not only about guns, it is also about media and social media when used against others, it is about cars and trucks when driven aggressively, it is also about hostile attitudes at our common places being normalized. One doesn’t need anymore to be the strong contender to be able to inflict pain on someone else.
Most of the time, violent crimes are committed by weak and fearful individuals that attack some of our neighbors, schools, or institutions. Still, the narrative on the media remains that of a strong power inflicting pain on a weak contender. But that is not true anymore! Of course, there is pain, and of course, there is violence inflicted on the victims of those attacks, but we need to understand that those acting violently are not strong, but weak and fearful. Neither they are smart. Frequently, they are even insane.
Moreover, those being attacked are not contenders, neither are they weak. Like most of us, they are brave and strong, and they have chosen to delegate the monopoly of violence to our institutions, understanding that happiness is something we may only pursue together.
The narrative has to change, so it has the way we approach the problem and, ultimately, the way we fix it!
itstimeforablog 
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