Comments on: Sting Of The Scorpion

By: Andreea

Andreea — Thu, 01 Apr 2010 09:36:55 +0000

I was watching a talk-show about violence last night and I felt sad and a little frustrated when the guests and the moderator said that aggression is innate and we should face the fact that it’s in our nature to fight each other. I felt sad because I don’t agree and I wish more people would take the time to see all the nonviolence and peacefulness that exist in the world. And I felt angry because I wish that those who have the power to reach and influence a lot of people would use this power in a benign manner.
We are not innate warriors. We do act violently sometimes, but we act peacefully most of the time. And we can learn to control and modify the way we act and react to unpleasant events. As you wrote, we have a choice. There’s no denying that many things in our environment make us feel frustrated and angry, but it’s in our hands what we do with those feelings.
I’m just repeating what you already said and I guess it comes from my urge to make my point, which is probably due to my need for communion and shared values.
I was thinking about writing an article about violence in schools and I remembered that some people seem to think that kids act violently because it’s in their nature. What I want to show is that the school environment is in itself violent and that children are in fact imprisoned, so maybe we should look at the idea of school and wonder if it’s the best way to treat our children. What do you think?
And if you’re interested, I found this article which argues quite convincingly that humans are not innately aggressive: http://www.alfiekohn.org/miscellaneous/aggression.htm.

By: ianpeatey

ianpeatey — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 16:37:52 +0000

A fellow Scorpio! Whenever I read the character descriptions of Scorpios I’m always happy to be one. They always seem the most interesting of star signs. But then I am biased!

By: ianpeatey

ianpeatey — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 16:36:45 +0000

You’re right .. these are the things we’re blind to and by definition can’t see them. Until we do.

By: ianpeatey

ianpeatey — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 16:36:08 +0000

Hi Carlos. And it’s not always easy, is it? Some of those ingrained beliefs and ideas take a lot of shaking out. Happy to have helped – and I appreciate the link!

By: ianpeatey

ianpeatey — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 16:34:35 +0000

I’m all for reducing the amount of self-blame and guilt in the world. I like this idea that it’s all a gradual development.

By: ianpeatey

ianpeatey — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 16:33:46 +0000

There is a lot of ‘justification’ for all kinds of things .. and I guess we’ve all fallen into that trap at some point in our lives. Yet each of us is responsible for shaping our own actions.

By: ianpeatey

ianpeatey — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 16:32:24 +0000

Those labels form the past do tend to hang around, don’t they? I think of myself as a slim young man with a full head of hair….

By: Daphne @ Joyful Days

Daphne @ Joyful Days — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 13:30:11 +0000

Love the story! It highlights the different between our conscious and subconscious self-image. And you made a nice point from that story. PS: I’m a Scorpio too!