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People have long assumed that violence is necessary for political change. Rulers never cede power voluntarily, the argument goes, so progressives have no choice but to contemplate the use of force to bring about a better world, mindful of the trade-off between a small amount of violence now and acceptance of an unjust status quo indefinitely.

It seems to me that any sensible person must see that violence does not change the world and if it does, then only temporarily.

All violence consists in some people forcing others, under threat of suffering or death, to do what they do not want to do.

For all the tribulations in our lives, for all the troubles that remain in the world, the decline of violence is an accomplishment that we can savor - and an impetus to cherish the forces of civilization and enlightenment that made it possible.

Our most important task is to transform our consciousness so that violence is no longer an option for us in our personal lives, that understanding that a world of peace is possible only if we relate to each other as peaceful beings, one individual at a time.

The world is ruled by violence, or at least the imminent threat of violence. It always has been.

Much violence is based on the illusion that life is a property to be defended and not to be shared.

Violence is the first refuge of the violent.

In our struggle to restrain the violence and contain the damage, we tend to forget that the human capacity for aggression is more than a monstrous defect, that it is also a crucial survival tool.

I maintain that nothing useful and lasting can emerge from violence.