A Peaceable Resistance

As a person who has, throughout the entirety of my lifetime, strongly opposed all forms of violence, and also as a person who strongly opposes the malign structure of capitalism that brutally governs the pattern of nearly all human actions, I am frequently challenged to explain how radical, beneficial change can be achieved without recourse to bloodshed. My steadfast response, expressed here in brief outline, is as follows.

I propose a peaceable resistance, achieved by means of a widespread refusal to comply with the regular demands of the capitalist dictatorship. It could begin with a general strike: a firm, deliberate withdrawal from the regular grind of capitalist activity, undertaken with the clear understanding that any chance of succeeding would depend on a willingness to endure hardship and a dedication to the highest principles.

It would not happen quickly, in a day or a week or a month, and it would not be an easy task, but that which is truly worthwhile, and truly lasting in its effect, is rarely easy. Most people are inclined to thoughtlessly reject the unmistakable power of nonviolent revolution out of hand, but even a brief consideration of human history provides undeniable evidence that wholesale violence can never serve as the way forward.

Only the rational path of active nonviolence, as courageously exemplified by Mohandas K. Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr., can offer any hope of finally taking us beyond the foul, wretched cycle of perpetual corruption and relentless mayhem that currently enslaves the soul of mankind. Given the overwhelming necessity of building a better world of equity and safety for all people, no other path is morally acceptable.