We don’t have peace because we choose to have a conflict

Conflicts don’t start themselves. Whether you are involved in a conflict with your spouse, kids or employer it is a conflict that could have been avoided – if you wanted to. The same goes when it comes to bigger conflicts like conflicts between countries or group of countries. If you want to find out who started a conflict, look for who can benefit from that conflict.

 

That goes for all conflicts!

Example: The western countries were very quick to blame Russia for poisoning the ex-spy Sergei Skripal in the UK. They kind of took it for granted and almost no one was interested in looking for evidence. But who would actually have an interest in poisoning and ex-spy with the risk of getting into diplomatic bad standing?

If the Russians want to get rid of Sergei Skripal they could have done it a long time ago in a much more sophisticated manner that caused no suspicion on Russia. The Independent suggests Boris Johnson made misleading comments about the evidence suggesting Russia was responsible for the attack on Sergei and Yulia Skripal in Salisbury.

Think for yourself: Who will benefit from putting Russia in a bad light? It can become quite a long list – right, but you won’t find Russia on that list.

When you have a conflict with your spouse or kids you have that conflict for a reason, namely that at least one of the parties want that conflict. That can be because of the feeling of unfairness, greed, stupidity, ignorance, arrogance, culture. The reasons are many, but there is always a reason and someone wants that conflict.

 

Religion and nationalism

Religions and nationalism are great enablers for conflicts because they make us believe that we are better than and superior to people with another religion or from another country. As a human, we have a basic need for affiliation. And if we are socially sidetracked we are very easy to lure into a religion or extreme nationalism because it gives you a belongingness with other people with the same lack of social skills.

Since the Roman empire, the politicians have used that deliberately to divide people and make them fight each other, just like mothers are great at creating dissension between her kids so that she can remain in power of the family long after the children have grown up and left home. Desmond Morris writes about that in the book: “The Naked ape”.

Religious leaders remain in power for the very same reasons. Weak, uneducated people can always be manipulated because of we all need a reason for being and we all need answers to why we are in our current position.

The best medicine against religious madness and nationalism is education and cultural exchange.