Letters to my sons.

Dear Son,

I started writing this blog after the 7th July 2005 bombings in London which I had the unfortunate misfortune to witness the aftermath at Aldgate East tube station. And it is to this subject I return again. I keep returning to this subject because the justification of killing people is the root cause of all that is wrong in this world. The value of human life is nil for so many people and this worthlessness seems to start with certain individuals themselves.

Today in Iraq more suicide bombers have reeked their personal type of terror, just as they did on July 7th in London. They are so motivated in their beliefs that they are prepared to die for them – so far nothing so bad. The bit I don’t understand is why they insist on killing others. Do they know, on a personal basis, the people they are about to kill? If they did then maybe the people they have targeted are nasty murdering scum who need to be taken out to save many more lives and they are doing the majority a favour and saving lives. There is no evidence to suggest that these suicide bombers are nothing more than random killers who are interested more in the number of people they kill than the life stories of the individuals them selves.

If these suicide bombers are so intent on killing themselves, then why do they have to make others suffer? During the Vietnam war Buddhist monks protested against their oppression in the South by setting themselves on fire in Saigon. They committed ritual suicide and sent a powerful message to the world without hurting anyone except them selves. So why don’t these suicide bombers follow this example and simply set themselves on fire well away from other people?

And let us extend this principle to leaders of countries engaged in war. In the old days leaders of factions would ride at the front of their army and risk their own lives. They wouldn’t send someone else’s sons into battle and hide away along way from the front. Any person who wasn’t ready to risk their own life would find very people ready to risk their own. This may lead to a lot less wars.