#96: Wake a Sleeping Baby (PART 5)

【A Baby Within Us】
From time to time, people say Don’t wake a sleeping baby and mean Better not talk about it; safe to steer clear. Almost as if to willfully ignore a very large problem in our world like Discrimination.
 
The same is true with a very large problem in War.
 
That is, we tend to focus on the Aggression against our own nation, yet conveniently look away from Our own aggression against other nations.
 
In fact, not a small number of people say Don’t wake a sleeping baby in an attempt to deter us from rocking the boat; as if talking about “Our own aggression” equates to stirring up “Unnecessary trouble.”
 
Truth be told, a society that quietly condones such willful ignorance is a society that’s disturbingly trapped in a “Prejudiced justification created by the majority.”
 
Sadly, we can’t help but make a regrettable observation that discrimination/violence are found everywhere, across time. Perhaps, it’s because most living beings naturally possess the survival instincts to try to secure our own safety/comfort; the territoriality behavior that often directs us to attack those who seemingly endanger it.
 
To be sure, most people from very young age, possess a selfish part within ourselves that drives this territoriality behavior. For example, when kids fight over a toy or a prime play spot at the park. “It’s mine!!” Kids can easily get worked up, screaming their lungs out. Pushing and tugging, sometimes escalate into hitting and kicking. Simply put, kids often attack to try to get what they want.
 
The most embarrassing thing, however, is that some adults continue to display this same behavioral pattern. And most regrettably, many adults quietly condone such adult selfishness so not to stir up “Unnecessary trouble.”
 
It’s truly regrettable because such pattern, knowingly or not, weaves discrimination/violence into our social fabric. And it creates a social structure that subjects people, especially those who are less-fortunate than most, to discrimination/violence at the opposite end of selfishness.
 
In both the past and present, the horrors of discrimination/violence incited by adults who blindly followed our survival instincts; who selfishly carried out our territoriality behavior. No matter how inadvertent we claim our behavior to be, we can do better by becoming a part of the solution; not part of the problem.
 
To ensure that past tragedy will never again fall upon anyone, talking/learning/educating about the realities of discrimination/violence is crucially important.
 
Just like Discrimination, we must recognize the risk in “Tragedy repeating itself when no one knows anything about Our own aggression against other nations.” We must engage in valuable conversations with our youngsters on this sensitive but important topic of “Why wars are wrong.” 
 
When we truly commit ourselves to never again let past tragedy fall upon anyone, we will honestly confront the realities of our history with full transparency, no matter how harsh they may be.
 
We must engage in discussions, express opinions, and delve deeply into the truth. We must educate with honest facts at our schools.
 
Facing the harsh yet honest facts builds true pride, whereas looking away or gravitating toward the easy way out fabricates hollow pride.
 
“Wake a Sleeping Baby” isn’t really about babies.
 
It’s about the “Sleeping baby” within ourselves who tend to look away from the harsh realities; who tend to seek for the easy way out.

Read Previous: Wake a Sleeping Baby (4)【Discrimination Doesn’t Exist?】

Complete Series: Wake a Sleeping Baby (1)～(5)
[1]   [2]   [3]   [4]   [5]  
 
Read Theme: Violence/Peace