I am trying to contain my frustration with the destruction caused by ISIS…again! They have now destroyed the Temple of Bel in Syria which was built nearly 2000 years ago. At times like this I contend that ISIS stands for It Sure Is Stupid or more appropriately It Surely Is Satan. I am not going to go into the historical ramifications but here is a list human rights abuse and war crime findings against ISIS.

• 5.1 Religious and minority group persecution
• 5.2 Treatment of civilians
• 5.3 Child soldiers
• 5.4 Sexual violence and slavery
• 5.5 Attacks on members of the press
• 5.6 Beheadings and mass executions
• 5.7 Use of chemical weapons
• 5.8 Destruction of cultural and religious heritage

Let’s just call ISIS exactly what they are…bullies! Below is the definition of “Bullying” (thanks to wikipedia)

Bullying is the use of force, threat, or coercion to abuse or intimidate, or aggressively dominate others. The behavior is often repeated and habitual. One essential prerequisite is the perception, by the bully or by others, of an imbalance of social or physical power, which is what distinguishes bullying from conflict. Behaviors used to assert such domination can include verbal harassment or threat, physical assault or coercion, and such acts may be directed repeatedly towards particular targets.

This is how I view ISIS. They have taken it upon themselves to decide life or death for their victims. They have decided that there is no value in historical monuments or religions. They take over cities and towns as though it is to be expected. The reality is the entire planet is their so-called target. All of this is happening before our very eyes.

I remember seeing on “World At War” the German citizens being forced to view the atrocities that the Nazis had committed against the Jews at Buchenwald. They gagged, cried (many sobbed) and were appalled at what their fellow countrymen had done. Their only defense was “We didn’t know.” That was 1945 and history will never tell us what they would have done if they’d known.

But that excuse doesn’t apply to us. We DO know! We watch it daily now, sometimes “live”.  These are bullies to the ultimate extreme and at this point we’re essentially bystanders.

Of typical bystanders (wikipedia)

Often, bullying takes place in the presence of a large group of relatively uninvolved bystanders. In many cases, it is the bully’s ability to create the illusion that he or she has the support of the majority present that instills the fear of “speaking out” in protestation of the bullying activities being observed by the group. Unless the “bully mentality” is effectively challenged in any given group in its early stages, it often becomes an accepted, or supported, norm within the group.

Unless action is taken, a “culture of bullying” is often perpetuated within a group for months, years, or longer.

Bystanders who have been able to establish their own “friendship group” or “support group” have been found to be far more likely to speak out against bullying behavior than those who have not.

There is growing research that suggests interventions should build on the foundation that bullying is morally wrong

 My greatest concern is that we are again becoming desensitized to the evil happening in our world today. We see it, hear about it, talk about it and want it to go away. We then go about our daily lives and do nothing, accepting that it’s just another chapter in History.

I believe we must create a “Citizen of Earth Group” to counter this evil cluster of bullies. A good time to do this is now. October is just around the corner and it is “National Anti-Bullying Month”. Wouldn’t that be something if the entire world, as one unit, spent an entire month eliminating bullying? Obviously ISIS would be at the top of the list. And, given time, we could turn our attention to Putin of Russia, Kim-Jong-un of North Korea, XiJinping of China and the list goes on.

All 50 US states have Anti-Bullying legislation. We could build on them to create a planet wide policy.

We have our own national bully here in the USA. We call him Trump. He’s a bully in the true sense of the word. The one redeeming quality is that he doesn’t have the power (nor the inclination) to kill masses and destroy whatever is in his way….yet. He is, however, in a position to cause some National and International collateral damage with his loose cannon approach. Since I do not believe it would be good for the planet if the Donald had control of a country (any country), this would be a job for the mighty ”Citizens of Earth Group”(CEG).

The first line of action for the CEG  will be to arrange a sequestered meeting between Trump, Putin, Kim-Jong-un and XiJinping. They should meet in Ar-Raqqah, Syria which is the headquarters for ISIS. (We wouldn’t want them to miss out in the festivities.) The moderator will be a female newscaster, which should trigger the tempers of everyone involved.  I don’t believe they should be locked up together all month. Heck, I’d give them a long week-end…that should do it. We may discover that the best way to beat a bully is with another bully. Take away the buttons they threaten to push and armies they’ve controlled and they’re all just human beings…no greater or lesser than you or me.

Sadly,the reality is that there is no ”Citizens of Earth Group”. I used to think that the United Nations served this purpose…obviously not.

Personally, I can’t say “I didn’t know” and now you can’t say it either. Since we are aware of the atrocities and bullying we must start the small but building voice that will become so loud that nothing else can be heard. If you tell 2 people and they tell 2 people…you know how it goes. The message must be “This is not acceptable and cannot exist. We are not bystanders!”. As Martin Luther King Jr said,”Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter”. And the famous quotation by Edmond Burke, “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing” rings as true today as it did in the 1700’s when he made this statement.

I will speak out against bullying. I will keep myself aware of current affairs and look for any opportunity to make a difference.I will not become desensitized.

I must admit that I don’t expect to see all the crazy bullies eliminated within my lifetime, but I do see good things happening. The citizens of Hungary showing such compassion to the Syrian refugees is where it starts. We must be grateful that they were “Citizens of Earth”.