It is an inescapable fact of being human that we have conflict. We fight over a great many things. Conflict is something that resounds not only in the household bickering many of us have experienced, but it resounds in the very fabric of our nature, our history, and our societies. We see fighting in sports, in homes, in our streets, and in our schools. Whether it is siblings squabbling over what toy they get to play with, or an all out invasion of another country by our armed forces, fighting is part of life. The question remains; why do we fight? There are many answers, and many complicated ones at that, but I am a believer that the root cause of conflict is lack. Lack as in an absence or void of something wanted or needed by someone or some group. Here is why. When you lack something, there is a strong urge to go fill this absence that is present in your life. For example, lets say you wanted to play with a toy as a kid, but your brother or sister wouldn't let you. This lack of fulfillment drives you to try and force or persuade your sibling to let you play with your toy in order to fill the void of not playing with it. On a bigger picture level, when we have conflict between armed groups, there are usually two primary things that lead to this conflict; Resources and ideology. A lack drives both. How? In a war over resources, one side is trying to gain access to the other side's resources by forcing them to relinquish control. This lack is quite obvious. One side lacks the resources and tries to take them by force. Now the ideology lack is a little more complicated. In a war of beliefs and ideas, the ideas that are causing the conflict are often driving people who believe in them to go and expand their territory and consolidate resources and power into the leaders of the ideological movement. As a result, the followers of the ideology are driven by lack by way of being convinced they must expand and conquer other peoples and territories. Being driven by a perceived (and often misplaced) sense of lack, these people expand and entrench upon the liberty and territory of others to fulfill an ideological gain and purpose. The irony is that as conflict is primarily caused by lack, it often results in lack as well. War causes destruction and death, creating a lack of life and a void of creation. Fighting on a more interpersonal level causes broken relationships and a lack of the benefits and love thereof. Even in sports, when you measure success, you measure it based on who has done more, and who has done less. This Lack-Conflict relationship extends to many different areas of life. Class conflicts, where the poor feel as if they have been treated unfairly and lack what others have. Political upheaval, where one side of a political spectrum is out of power and determines that they have been unjustly relieved of said power. Racial issues, where one race is perceived to be oppressed or treated unfairly. Theft in all its forms, i.e. the theft of goods, the theft of opportunities, the theft of freedom and liberty. Inequality in many forms. There are a great many more than what was just mentioned. Another key component in the Lack-Conflict relationship is revenge. When someone has been intentionally deprived of something they value or love, there is an instinct to seek out revenge for that theft, and if they succeed, they only serve to create more lack. Now Lack and loss are quite synonymous, and you can often interchange them in this post. Lack is not only a root of conflict, it is a root of evil. Scarcity and lack are the primary reason why most of things that we would call evil happen. Again, some would argue that things like selfishness and greed cause conflict and evil. They are right, but look what those things cause by their very nature; lack. Greed creates an absence for others around you. Selfishness means you will only do things that serve yourself while disregarding the needs and wants of others. Covetousness and jealousy also cause conflict and evil, because you want what you do not have or cannot have, and you desire or attempt to take that thing for yourself. Covetousness is just as dangerous as greed. The remedy for conflict and fighting are these following actions: Share more; if you want to alleviate tension and hostility between you and your friends and family, sharing what you have will greatly reduce stress and angst toward you. Give more; again this goes along with sharing quite substantially, but when you give something to someone you are automatically filling a lack or void in their lives. This is the most effective method to remedy lack in the world. Invest more; kind of self explanatory, this method of giving is a why to give while getting a return for what you gave, which generates growth and remedies lack. Compromise more; learn to take the initiative to not always have to be right and learn to listen to the interests and needs of the other side and come to a deal that benefits everyone. Lastly, Forgive more; if someone has done something wrong to you, you are not going to fill the lack created by creating even more lack. A void can't fill a void in the same way that something can't come out of nothing. You have to fill that void with something positive. Taking revenge will only serve to destroy you even more. Revenge escalates, and it doesn't just stop at one instance. If you can mend the relationship, try and do so, if you can't, then just let it go. On a side note, I always looked at evil as the result of a lack. Lies, killing, stealing, all these things are a result of an absence or lack, or causing in themselves absence or lack. We often describe evil in terms like darkness. Look at what darkness is! Darkness is the absence of light! Deception is the absence of truth! I hope you all enjoy this post. Thanks and God bless.
Josh
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