Peace


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Peace

Please help improve this article or section by expanding it. Further information might be found on the talk page. (December 2007)This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (January 2007)This article may need to be rewritten entirely to comply with Wikipedia's quality standards. You can help. The discussion page may contain suggestions.Peace is a term that most commonly refers to an absence of hostility, but which also represents a larger concept wherein there are healthy or newly-healed interpersonal or international relationships, safety in matters of social or economic welfare, the acknowledgment of equality and fairness in political relationships and, in world matters, peacetime; a state of being absent any war or conflict. Reflection on the nature of peace is also bound up with considerations of the causes for its absence or loss. Among these potential causes are: insecurity, social injustice, economic inequality, political and religious radicalism, and acute nationalism.Derived from the Anglo-Norman pas c.1140, and meaning "freedom from civil disorder", the English word came into use in various personal greetings from c.1300 as a translation of the biblical terms pax (from the Vulgate) and Greek eirene, which in turn were renderings of the Hebrew shalom. Shalom, cognate with the Arabic "salaam", has multiple meanings: safety, welfare, prosperity, security, fortune, friendliness. The personalised meaning is reflected in a non-violent lifestyle which also describes a relationship between any people characterized by respect, justice and goodwill. This latter understanding of peace can also pertain to an individual's sense of himself or herself, as to be "at peace" with one's own mind attested in Europe from c.1200. The early English term is also used in the sense of "quiet", reflecting a calm, serene, and meditative approach to the family or group relationships that avoids quarreling and seeks tranquility — an absence of disturbance or agitation.// UnderstandingsPlease help improve this section by expanding it. Further information might be found on the talk page. (April 2008)Many different theories of "peace" exist in the world of peace studies, which involves the study of conflict resolution, disarmament, and cessation of violence. The definition of "peace" can vary with religion, culture, or subject of study.Peace is a state of balance and understanding in yourself and between others where respect is gained by the acceptance of differences, tolerance persists, conflicts are resolved through dialogue, people's rights are respected and their voices are heard, and everyone is at their highest point of serenity without social tension. JusticeMahatma Gandhi suggested that if an oppressive society lacks violence, the society is nonetheless not peaceful, because of the injustice of the oppression. Gandhi articulated a vision of peace in which justice is an inherent and necessary aspect; that peace requires not only the absence of violence but also the presence of justice. Galtung described this peace, peace with justice, as "positive peace," because hostility and further violence could no longer flourish in this environment.During the 1950s and 60s, when Martin Luther King Jr. and the civil rights movement carried out various non-violent activities aimed at ending segregation and racial persecution in America, they understood peace as more than just the absence of violence. They observed that while there was not open combat between blacks and whites, there was an unjust system in place in which the government deprived African Americans of equal rights. While some opponents criticized the activists for "disturbing the peace", Martin Luther King observed that "True peace is not merely the absence of tension: it is the presence of justice."Galtung coined the term structural violence to refer to such situations, which although not violent on the surface, harbor systematic oppression and injustice. InjusticeSince classical times, it has been noted that peace has sometimes been achieved by the victor over the vanquished by the imposition of ruthless measures. In his book Agricola the Roman historian Tacitus includes eloquent and vicious polemics against the rapacity and greed of Rome. One, that Tacitus says is by the British chieftain Calgacus, ends Auferre trucidare rapere falsis nominibus imperium, atque ubi solitudinem faciunt, pacem appellant. (To ravage, to slaughter, to usurp under false titles, they call empire; and where they make a desert, they call it peace. — Oxford Revised Translation).yes Peace and developmentOne concept or idea that often complements peace studies is development. Economic, cultural, and political development can supposedly take "underdeveloped" nations and peoples out of poverty, thus helping bring about a more peaceful world. As such, many international development agencies carry out projects funded by the governments of industrialized countries, mostly the western, designed to "modernize" poor countries.The concept of peace has been linked to the wide idea of development, assuming that development is not the classical pursuit of wealth. Peaceful development can be a set of many different elements such as good governance, healthcare, education, gender equality, disaster preparedness, infrastructure, economics, rule of law, human rights, environment and other political issues. The measuring of development uses not only GDP but also numerous measures such as:Literacy ratesLife expectancyGini coefficientPer capita incomeMaternal survival rateHIV infection ratesNumber of doctors per capitaHuman Development Indexand othersIn this frame, the problem of peace fully involves the complex matter of human development, what explains the complexity of any peace-building processes.“Peace is what happens when all peoples are free to develop themselves in the way they want, without having to fight for their rights.”—Bruno Picozzi Democratic peace theoryProponents of the democratic peace theory argue that strong empirical evidence exists that democracies never or rarely make war against each other. An increasing number of nations have become democratic since the industrial revolution, and thus, they claim world peace may become possible if this trend continues.Piece distributes safer society. Capitalism peace theoryIn her capitalism peace theory, philosopher Ayn Rand holds that the major wars of history were started by the more controlled economies of the time against the freer ones and that capitalism gave mankind the longest period of peace in history -- a period during which there were no wars, involving the entire civilized world -- from the end of the Napoleonic wars in 1815 to the outbreak of World War I in 1914.It must be remembered that the political systems of the nineteenth century were not pure capitalism, but mixed economies. The element of freedom, however, was dominant; it was as close to a century of capitalism as mankind has come. But the element of statism kept growing throughout the nineteenth century, and by the time it blasted the world in 1914, the governments involved were dominated by statist policies. Movements and activismMain article: Peace movementPeace movements are comprised of socially active individuals and groups that seek to achieve ideals such as ending war and minimizing inter-human violence. Means to achieve these ends usually include advocacy of pacifism, non-violent resistance, diplomacy, boycotts, moral purchasing, supporting anti-war political candidates, demonstrations and lobbying to create or amend pro-peace legislation. Plural peacesFollowing Wolfgang Dietrich, Wolfgang Sützl, and the Innsbruck School of Peace Studies, some "peace thinkers" have abandoned any single and all-encompassing definition of peace. Rather, they promote the idea of many peaces. They argue that since no singular, correct definition of peace can exist, peace should be perceived as a plurality.For example, in the Great Lakes region of Africa, the word for peace is kindoki, which refers to a harmonious balance between human beings, the rest of the natural world, and the cosmos. This vision is a much broader view of peace than a mere "absence of war" or even a "presence of justice" standard.These thinkers also critique the idea of peace as a hopeful or eventual end. They recognize that peace does not necessarily have to be something humans might achieve "some day." They contend that peace exists in the present, we can create and expand it in small ways in our everyday lives, and peace changes constantly. This view makes peace permeable and imperfect rather than static and utopian.Such a view is influenced by postmodernism. Inner peaceOne meaning of peace refers to inner peace, a state of mind, body and mostly soul, a peace within ourselves. People that experience inner peace say that the feeling is not dependent on time, people, place, or any external object or situation, asserting that an individual may experience inner peace even in the midst of war. One of the oldest writings on this subject is the Bhagavad Gita, a part of India's Vedic scriptures.Sevi Regis describes inner peace as, "the state or condition of restfulness, harmony, balance, equilibrium, longevity, justice, resolution, timelessness, contentment, freedom, and fulfillment, either individually or simultaneously present, in such a way that it overcomes, demolishes, banishes, and/or replaces everything that opposes it." Nonviolence and pacifismMahatma Gandhi's conception of peace was not as an end, but as a means: "There is no way to peace; peace is the way." Gandhi envisioned nonviolence as a way to make a political statement. Judeo-Christian tradition declares "Thou shalt not kill," although there is no consensus on the most accurate interpretation.Followers of some religions, such as
Security Council resolution calling for a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip, as Prime Minister Ehud Olmert called the plan 'unworkable.John Bell, a farmer from North Carolina,along with his wife and children settled in northern Robertson County Tennessee in 1804. Like the rest of the compact nvi 2x5-series, this portable navigator is priced right and ultra-easy to use. Syria will never make peace without the return of territory now occupied by Israel. 9-- Israel on Friday rejected a U. women's peace organization. Below are the Speaker's remarks:peace of mindAuthor Paul Eidelberg recalls lessons on war promulgated by one of the world's great military scientists -- lessons that Israel will do well to heed at this critical moment in the Hanukah War as "peace" proposals are bandied about by those who -- should they get their way -- will place their "humanity" in the service of an endless war of attritionSyria has withdrawn from the indirect peace negotiations with Israel in protest over Israel's actions in the Gaza. Every day there are news reports of more deaths in Iraq, Afghanistan, Gaza, Israel, Darfur, and the list goes on. This Israeli brutality and defiance of international law will certainly breed more violence and extremism; it will further


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