Violence and Incompetence

A few days ago, I came across the following quote by one of my favourite writers, Isaac Asimov:

“Violence is the last refuge of the incompetent.”

The path of human history has been bespeckled with episodes of violence. Violence has been used against political adversaries, those who practice difference of religious and other creeds, "wrong" colour, fragile people of all ages and various other reasons.
Unfortunately, violence still plagues humanity. It is around us and seems to be fed by the tongues of fire of hatred, ignorance and, sadly, apathy as well.

Some have wondered as to what Asimov meant by the above quote.

There are those who depict it as, if violence is the last option, one is incompetent. Others, view it as violence is the first option of the incompetent.

As much as I am certain that Asimov meant  the latter, in my view, violence should not be part of any equation, if we can help it. 

Instead, I believe that we should be addressing the subject of Incompetence, its sources and how it can lead to violence.

Incompetence is the inability, ineptitude to do something successfully. It can manifest itself over a large spectrum of fields, intellectual, physical emotional and moral as well.

Part of humanity, so it seems, has lost its moral agent. It no longer seems to live up to a certain code of conduct created by humans like us all. For them, the seams that distinguish between good and evil, right and wrong, just and unjust, that which has limits and limitlessness, unity and division, have come unraveled and blurry.

In cases of violence, it is always easy to blame others. How convenient it is to hold someone else responsible for such a breakdown of values, be it the system, the government, apathy or lack of police enforcement. “Yes,” admit those who are pointing a blaming finger at the ‘system,' the culprits who commit violence are horrible and should be punished ….but….but….but…”

 Invoking or utilizing violence, I will venture to say, is to a certain extent, a form of deficiency, be it cognitive or moral. Furthermore, I do not believe it is an inherent deficiency. In my view it is an acquired one. It is this deficiency, I reckon, which is the root cause of Incompetence. Hopefully, it can be reversed or corrected.

I am not here to blame anyone, offer any earth-shaking suggestions or magic solutions. I am merely an observer who is trying to contain that which we have experienced around us, one who cares and wants to make a difference, be it the smallest.

There is not much that I can do to improve our world but I certainly do as much as I can, and mostly for the sake of posterity,  in my own little world. As a teacher, I wish to restore competency, good judgement, and clarity of thought. I try to rehearse the foundations of morality with my students as much as possible. I stress to them the importance of debating opposing views while maintaining the dignity of difference and agreeing to disagree. I do my best to equip them with the skills and the proper compass in the hope that these will guide them wisely and unharmed through the twists of their Life’s terrain.

Only time will tell whether I have succeeded.

Shavua tov to all.