The Power of Love

So I have some stuff that I really have to put out there today, after thinking about everything that has been going on. But first, as a totally unrelated note, it is fucking gorgeous outside. I'm currently laying in my grass in my front yard, writing this. Just so you all know and can be jealous. But this post isn't about how nice it is outside, or how "Right Me Up" is a perfect summery State Radio song, it's about my questions and opinions on world issues.

As most of you probably know, via it from the news, Twitter, or Facebook, Osama Bin Laden is dead. If you're ignorant like me, you found out from your friends Facebook statuses. Now, I'm not going to call anyone out here, but I do want to give you an idea of the posts I saw last night. Note that these are actual posts from my actual friends:"Osama Bin Laden, killshot, ftw", "About time we got that bastard", "America...FUCK YEAH", and "Ding dong, the witch is dead!". Now I want to put it out there that I in no way mean to make light of what this man has caused, but since when do we celebrate death?

(ed note: The following quote has been popping up on facebook, and it relates perfectly to what I'm saying here, so enjoy)

"I mourn the loss of thousands of precious lives, but I will not rejoice in the death of one, not even an enemy. Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that."
-Martin Luther King, Jr.

It's a known fact that Osama Bin Laden was a terrible man, who did terrible things, and his thoughts and actions took the lives of many Americans. However, I find it incredibly interesting that instead of celebrating our soldiers, many people are celebrating this mans' death. It's sad that the road to peace is often paved with so much hate. It's a cycle, in order to solve a problem, we usually instigate more of a problem in the process. Like I said, and I can already feel the negative repercussions of this post, I mean no disrespect to anyone in this.

However, at what point is it okay to kill someone? Does the government have a chart laid out based on peoples actions and their punishments? If we can all remember back to Saddam Hussien, he was given a trial and sentenced to death. This is different than hunting him down and killing him. However, this raises a whole issue that I have with these trials and the policies behind them. These injustices happen all the time, even here in the great USA. (See Troy Davis).

Jimi Hendrix had a great saying, one that plasters my bedroom wall, and I feel that his words are timeless and reign true today more than ever "When the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know peace". In a world that is so filled with hate, love and peace are shockingly absent in many of our lives.

I know this isn't the usual posting that you'd expect to find here, and I hope no one was truly offended by this, but this is an issue that really did strike a chord with me. I'll leave you all with that to think about, maybe I'm crazy, maybe it's just how I think, or maybe I'm not. Here's a song that you should all check out, and the message in it is clear.

We all need to overcome the hate.