Philosophic Topics V

One might deem
"turn the other cheek"
to be its own kind
of philosophy, and
to that end, I'd like
to address it here,
because I can think
or no more relevant
example of how people
are supposed to act
around each other.

I understand the positive
nature, the goodwill
and best intentions
that lay behind it,
and that there is basically
nothing wrong with it,
but it's also a little
naive, something even Jesus
couldn't always live up to
(you might recall a certain
anecdote concerning a
temple incident),
and perhaps for that
very reason I can't
say I personally endorse it,
at least not fully.

I believe that when people
are allowed to persist
in behaviors that are detrimental
to others, it hurts those
people as much as it hurts
those who are affected
by them, and to say
that the best and only
way to react is to
turn the other cheek
is to become a part
of the problem.

It's okay to say there's
a better way, that you
can't force people to change,
and I know we've had some
considerable examples
of this philosophy
(at least apparently)
in the last century,
but I say, change begins
by attempting to initiate it,
and that is not a self-
fulfilling prophecy.

Prophecy,
not philosophy.