Listen to this articleH.A.B.C. (HUMANS AS BLOODTHIRSTY CREATURES)
Time and again history has demonstrated that there definitely is a dark side to human nature. It is a side of human nature in which the basest, cruelest, and most primitive instincts seem to prevail in life. I have come to a realization that, up to the current point in human history, humans appear to be a bloodthirsty species. It seems as if humans simply cannot get enough of killing one another. This historical reality is akin to humans engaging in a perpetual orgy of senseless killing.
In all spheres of human life, there seems to be an obsession with violence, fighting, and killing. Whether justified are not, there are never-ending wars and killing between the nations of the world. There is fighting and killing between adults. There is fighting and killing between teenagers and children. Some gang members are obsessed with fighting and killing one another. Some hate groups are obsessed with fighting and killing their perceived enemies. Some television programs glorify fighting and killing. Some motion pictures glorify fighting and killing. Some radio stations play sound recordings that glorify fighting and killing. Some music recording artists make songs that glorify fighting and killing. Some video console games glorify fighting and killing. There is cradle-to-grave human exposure to mass media glorification of violence, fighting, maiming, and killing. Subliminally, humans are being conditioned to engage in acts of violence, fighting, maiming, and killing. Some corporate titans in the entertainment industry appear to have figured out that not only do drugs and sex sell as a form of entertainment but also fighting and killing as a form of entertainment represents a very lucrative business model. In some respects, it seems like the motto "build and they will come" has been replaced by the motto "kill and they will come" [to embrace the media's glorification of killing].
When it comes to action television programs and motion picture, their final chapters always tend to conclude with the obligatory and predictable fight scene, shoot-out scene, explosion scene, or murder scene. Thus, the seed is planted. The message that action television shows and movies project is this: Violence and killing are the way to solve problems. The seed planted in the human psyche is this: The only logical resolution to a problem is fighting, gunplay, and war. The seed planted in the human psyche is this: The only logical way to resolve a problem is to maim, shoot, or kill your rival. The seed planted in the human psyche is this: Bring on the guns and bombs. The seed planted in the human psyche is this: The only way to cope with a conflict is through violence and hatred. It is a cradle-to-grave experience gained by from watching television shows and going to movies from childhood, through adulthood, and ultimately to the moment of death. It is a cradle-to-grave experience that normalizes violence and murder.
The combined effect of the mass media's fascination with killing is this: Humans are becoming more and more desensitized to killing. The act of killing someone becomes a routine occurrence. The act of killing someone becomes accepted as normal. The act of killing someone becomes accepted as not too big of a deal. Therefore, more and more humans proceed to callously kill one another. For, when you mix an unending message of killing with a weak-minded or uninformed individual (with a firearm), it becomes a prescription for murder.
Undoubtedly, some of the killing is accidental and unintentional (say, an automobile accident). Some of the killing is justifiable (say, in self-defense against an armed robber, to put an end to acts of mass genocide by a deranged leader, or to defend the nation against an unprovoked attack). Some of the killing is self-inflicted (say, a suicide). A lot of the killing, however, is deliberate and trivial (such as disputes between acquaintances and family members, personal vendettas, and retribution for some transgression or another).
Humans seem to have conditioned or programmed themselves to kill one another. Some humans do not seem to give killing another human a second thought. When a dispute arises between some humans, they simply grab their guns and start blasting. They tend to ask questions and express remorse later. In some societies, some consider it sacrilegious and treasonable to say anything critical or negative about firearms, but I personally would rather hear the arguments for and against an issue (such as arming versus disarming) before deciding for myself which argument is the more reasonable one.
I get the human preoccupation with copulation particularly among the younger folks who have moved beyond puberty and into the young adulthood stage of life. The human obsession with copulation is a rational instinct. The act of copulating plays a vital survival-of-the-species role on Earth, which is the procreation and propagation of life into the next generation. I do not get the human preoccupation with killing one another. This human obsession with killing one another is irrational and outdated as of 2012.
It turns out that humans also are emotional creatures. One needs to look no farther than social-media commentary to gauge the spectrum of human emotions. Topics related to politics, religion, nationalism, race, class, and so forth, tend to send some humans into an emotional frenzy in various forums. The problem arises when some humans become so emotionally attached to these kinds of topics until, for them, it becomes something of a fanatical or cult-like obsession. When humans lose control of their emotions, it becomes the moment that they are susceptible to expressing their emotions in the form of hatred, violence, or even killing. Regrettably, there are other humans who are acutely aware of these emotional dynamics and seek to exploit them for various purposes.
Humans already kill numerous plants and animals each day for food. There already exists legally sanctioned violence on Earth such as certain types of violence permitted by some organized sports. Admittedly, except the plant kingdom, which generates its own food via the process of photosynthesis, the very nature of macroscopic life on Earth appears to require members of one species occasionally to kill members of another species for food just to survive. In this respect, much like dying, killing for sustenance is a natural part of the cycle of life on Earth. Stevie Wonder's song titled "Venus' Flytrap And The Bug" exemplifies the reality of one species killing members of another species for sustenance. Shouldn't the killing of plants and animals by humans each day for food be enough killing? Humans should not feel compelled to kill one another for trivial reasons. Humans even should not feel compelled to kill animals and plants for fun and recreation.
There is one thing that I have learned in life, and it is this: It does not take a lot of courage to grab a gun and kill someone with it. Anyone can grab a gun and kill someone with it. Even a four-year-old baby can grab a gun and shoot someone. It only takes a split second for somebody to grab a gun and kill someone with it. The true challenge in life lies in tossing the weapons into a furnace, sitting down with your adversaries, and peacefully working out the differences that divide you, which does require a great deal of courage to accomplish. The true challenge in life lies with letting go of the past, purging the violence and hatred from your hearts, and moving forward into the future to live in peace. The true challenge in life lies with humans embracing forgiveness for past (historical) transgressions, reconciling, and finding their way to the path that leads to a future of peace and relative prosperity on Earth.
As the following songs suggest, surely, humans have reached a point in space and time to wake up or snap out of the spell of hatred, violence, fighting, maiming, and killing that seems to have captivated them. United, the human species stands (that is, it survives and thrives, hence, a future of Heaven on Earth). Divided, the humans species falls (that is, possibly, it dies off and becomes extinct, hence, a future of Hell on Earth). The bottom-line is this: From a cosmic perspective, humans are one species, and planet Earth is their one and only known habitable home. Humans have a good thing going here on Earth, and wise humans would not mess it up. The good thing is called life. The blessing resides with being fortunate to have had the honor and the privilege of participating in this grandiose and miraculous thing known as life. It is up to humans whether or not to propel that life into something akin to Heaven. The alternative for humans is to keep up the fighting, maiming, and killing until it eventually leads to their downfall as a species.
The other planets and heavenly bodies in the Solar System serve as constant reminders to humans. On the one hand, the other planets remind humans of how fortunate humans are in the sense that existence on Earth very well could be bleak like existence on those planets. On the other hand, when humans look to the other planets in the Solar System, it is a constant reminder that, relatively speaking, Earth truly is a sort of paradise or crown jewel.
Humans are at the crossroads of their future survival. Their choice of which road to travel or which path to take into the future is theirs to make. Wise humans would choose Heaven on Earth over Hell.
The following link offers a different perspective on the human preoccupation with killing.
Obviously, the mother of all killing on Earth would result from the outbreak of another global war. It has been established that the global unleashing of nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons could lead to the killing of all life on Earth. Life forms that thrive at the bottom of the oceans and that thrive underground probably would survive an all-out global war. Humans have demonstrated that they can be highly energetic, motivated, enthusiastic, and ingenious when it comes to preparing for war (killing); cost is never too much of a factor. Can humans be equally passionate about living in peace with one another on Earth? I believe humans can be equally passionate about peace and prosperity on Earth in a democratic and free enterprise system.
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