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Does society need guns for peace? How can humanity transcend violence?

In his TED Talk (attached) Peter Van Uhm argues that "sometimes only the gun can stand between good and evil… The gun may be the most important instrument of peace and stability that we have in this world."

Is his thesis sound? Does society need guns? Can we feasibly rid society of violence? Are guns and other forms of weapons necessary for an orderly society? Given recent outbreaks of violent large scale massacres and terrorists attacks how should governing authorities approach gun and weapon control?

Related Talks:
Topics: Global Nonviolence a future without war geopolitics gun control military war
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    Gail . 50+

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    Nov 2 2012: What do we need for peace? We need to change our way of thinking. Peace is a power, and a potent power at that. I have used it on two occasions to diffuse a lethal situation. When enough of us begin to strive for inner-peace, the outer peace will appear. When there is no enemy within, there is no enemy without.

    Guns do not protect the peace. They hold that which is not peace in abeyance. Our culture appears not to know the meaning of the word peace.

    In his book "1984", George Orwell placed his characters in a dystopian setting where they would chant "war is peace". We do the same thing. Thus we believe that guns create peace.

    You can't force a people to be peaceful, but you can encourage them (using guns) to be afraid, and fear causes many problems. You can't force a people to be afraid either, but when people are not self-aware, it's an easy enough thing to do to them.
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      Tank General

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      Nov 4 2012: Thanks for your comment. I love the idea. Simply put: guns increase tension and directly provide the fuel in conflicts. Most of violence is derived from anger or insecurity within. Thus the cure is within. But once you have this peace what do you do about the outside world that still has a gun pointed at you? With that knowledge how do we move forward and feasibly address society? Can we expect all or even the majority of society to act rationally enough to where everyone could put their guns down without fear of attack? Guns may not actually protect peace but they provide some a sense of security. Sadly security may be a short-cut to the better solution of true peace.

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