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The right to use force and violence at will is accepted pretty much across the spectrum. Noam Chomsky, interview Abby Martin, The Empire Files, Youtube 2015
By no stretch of the imagination can you argue that the core principle of Islam is non-violence. It is taboo to notice this. Sam Harris, lecture New York Society for Ethical Culture lecture 2005
Why is religion such a potent source of violence? There is no other sphere of discourse in which human beings so fully articulate their differences from one another, or cast these differences in terms of everlasting rewards and punishments. Religion is the one endeavor in which ‘Us v Them’ thinking achieves a transcendent significance. If you really believe that calling God by the right name can spell the difference between eternal happiness and eternal suffering, then it becomes quite reasonable to treat heretics and unbelievers rather badly. The stakes of our religious differences are immeasurably higher than those born of mere tribalism, racism, or politics. Sam Harris
To define the mafia as ‘the industry of violence’ is open to misunderstanding. Violence is a means, not an end; a resource, not the final product. The commodity that is really at stake is protection. It may be argued that ultimately protection rests on the ability to use force, but it does not follow that it coincides with it ... These were people who find it in their individual interest to buy mafia protection. While some may be victims of extortion, many others are willing customers. Professor Diego Gambetta, Oxford University, The Sicilian Mafia: The Business of Private Protection
But if we reason it out simply and not try to be one bit fancy, then what sort of pride can you possibly take or what’s the sense of ever having it, if man is poorly put together as a physiological type and if the enormous majority of the human race is brutal, stupid, and profoundly unhappy. Anton Chekhov, The Cherry Orchard
I’m afraid of violence, but I’ve often submitted to it. Francis Bacon
When I say violence I mean violence of Life itself ... To think how disturbing what is called Reality is. Francis Bacon
‘Jane! will you hear reason?’ (he stooped and approached his lips to my ear) ‘because, if you won’t, I’ll try violence.’ Charlotte Bronte, Jane Eyre
Even so my bloody thoughts, with violent pace,
Shall ne’er look back. William Shakespeare, Othello III iii 454
School violence – with all the money being spent on security guards, metal detectors and cameras, it’s now harder to get into class than it is to get into the Prom Queen’s pants ... The truth about school violence is not what you’d expect after listening to the fearmongers in the news. According to the Justice Department violence in schools has dropped 40% since 1992. Penn & Teller, Bullshit! s1e2: Safety Hysteria, Showtime 2003
I will not include gratuitous violence and sex, not for anyone. Alan Ayckbourn, Season’s Greetings starring Michael Cashman & Barbara Flynn & Nicky Henson & Anna Massey & Geoffrey Palmer & Peter Vaughan et al, director Michael A Simpson, Bernard, re his puppet play, BBC 1986
Why would Christians want to portray Jesus as violent, as someone who killed people, who withered people? And I’m not sure that there’s a good answer to it. Professor Bart Ehrman, University of Northern California
People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf. George Orwell
Those who ‘abjure’ violence can do so only because others are committing violence on their behalf. George Orwell
It didn’t start out as a gang. We protected the store-owners, we protected the women, the mothers, the families ... I wanted to excel at something, and I did excel in violence. James Anderson (P Stone aka Satan), Chicago
Violence is absolute. Massimo Carlotto
But when Dim fisted him a few times on his filthy drunkard’s rot he shut up singing and started to creech: ‘Go on, do me in, you bastard cowards, I don’t want to live anyway, not in a stinking world like this.’ Anthony Burgess, A Clockwork Orange p4
So we cracked into him lovely, grinning all over our litsos, but he still went on singing. Then we tripped him so he laid down flat and heavy and a bucketload of beer-vomit came whooshing out. That was disgusting so we gave him the boot, one go each, and then it was blood, not song nor vomit, that came out of his filthy old rot. Then we went on our way. ibid. p15
It was round by the Municipal Power Plant that we came across Billy and his five droogs. Now in those days, my brothers, the teaming up was mostly by fours and fives, these being like auto-teams, four being a comfy number for an auto, and six being the outside limit for gang-size. Sometimes gangs would gang up so as to make like malenky armies for big night-war, but mostly it was best to roam in these like small numbers. ibid. p15
I said, smiling very wide and droogie: ‘Well, if it isn’t fat stinking billygoat Billyboy in poison. How art thou, thou globby bottle of cheap stinking chip-oil? Come and get one in the yarbles, if you have any yarbles, you eunuch jelly, thou.’ And then we started. ibid. p16
And, my brothers, it was really satisfaction to me to waltz – left two three, right two three – and carve left cheeky and right cheeky, so that like two curtains of blood seemed to pour out at the same time, one on eight side of his fat filthy oily snout in the winter sunlight. ibid. p17
Senseless violence is a prerogative of youth, which has much energy but little talent for the constructive. ibid.
You needn’t take it any further, sir. You’ve proved to me that all this ultraviolence and killing is wrong, wrong, and terribly wrong. I’ve learned me lesson, sir. I’ve seen now what I’ve never seen before. I’m cured! Praise Bog! I’m cured!
I was cured alright. ibid.
There was me – that is Alex – and my three droogs, that is Pete, Georgie and Dim. And we sat in the Korova Milkbar trying to make up our rassoodocks what to do with the evening. The Korova Milkbar sold milk-plus, milk plus vellocet or synthemesc or drencrom, which is what we were drinking. This would sharpen you up and make you ready for a bit of the old ultra-violence. A Clockwork Orange 1971 starring Malcolm McDowell & Patrick Magee & Michael Bates & Warren Clarke & John Clive & Adrienne Corri & Carl Duering & Paul Farrell & Clive Francis & Michael Gover et al, director Stanley Kubrick, Alex’s commentary
Go on, do me in, ya bastard cowards. I don’t want to live anyway. Not in a stinking world like this. It’s a stinking world because there’s no law and order any more. It’s a stinking world because it lets the young get onto the old. ibid. tramp to Alex et al
Then we headed West. What we were after now was the old surprise visit. That was a real kick and good for laughs and lashings of the old ultra-violence. ibid. Alex’s commentary
Is it some devil that crawls inside of you? ibid.
Excellent. He’s enterprising, aggressive, out-going, young, bold, vicious. He’ll do ... This vicious young hoodlum will be transformed out of all recognition. ibid.
Violence is a very horrible thing. ibid. female doctor to Alex
I never used to feel sick before. I used to feel like the very opposite. I mean doing it or watching it I used to feel real horror-show. ibid. Alex to female doctor