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How we can disarm our opponents and spread our message
I have often said, we have opponents, but no enemies. Our opponents are bad ideas, and destructive actions. The people who engage in them need to be persuaded to stop. But they are just people — like us. What they are DOING is the problem.
Of course, it’s hard to change people’s minds. And we won’t change everyone’s minds. We may feel despair, we may feel unable to change anyone’s mind.
But we can weaken the resolve of destructive people. We can make them less enthusiastic about their destructive ideas and behaviors. We can instill doubt. And, most powerful of all, we can befriend them.
This isn’t merely a tactic. It’s recognition of reality. It’s a recognition of our common humanity and our common fate here on Earth.
How can we be enemies to people whom we are trying to save from their own folly? Who we are trying to stop from destroying the life-giving biosphere of the planet that they (and we) live on? How can we be enemies of people who we try to protect from earning (and deserving) the enmity of their own children and grandchildren?
We are not enemies. We are friends of confused people. Of deluded people. Of self-destructive people. Of people who need to be stopped and woken up. It’s like trying to help a…
