An ancient idea for the future

Non-violence is no new kid on the block. It’s as old as the hills and the very bedrock of all wise philosophy. But it always steps back and allows violence to pass by - remembering that we exist in a world where violence still rules. As activists, we won’t get our views across by gate crashing – we can only do it by suggesting another way - no more. How careful is that? Perhaps it’s careful enough to stop us being pushy.
By checking this and worse, by stopping any tendency we might have to use emotional blackmail, we let non-violence grow in friendlier soil. We have to believe in people coming around, but slowly. The idea is that a whole heap of non-violent actions lets us harvest a bumper crop when it’s fine and ripe, when it can be most effective. It bides its time, becoming more powerful the longer it is kept waiting. It doesn’t need a supporting act to make it more valid or effective, so in other words it doesn’t need us trying to sell it. Well it does, but with subtler sales pitches than the ones we use today. And even then we can’t expect results quite yet. Non-violence can stand on its own feet but at present it acts simply as a badge of the future. If any of us feel a bit ahead of our times then we’ll probably adopt a less pushy nature in everything we do. Which, so the argument goes, is very convenient later on, when the rest of the world catches up.