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Seek justice, not revenge 

The Daily Planet received the following letter addressed to President Bush: 

Oh the grief! Oh the sadness! Oh the anger! Oh the tragedy, the pain! Oh the hatred! Oh the injustice! 

We stand on the brink of a dark, dark time of human history. We feel the extremeness of the darkest human emotions. We could not do otherwise. How human to feel these things. How justified! How justified to feel this is the time for anger, for violence, for retaliation. These are the words we hear, the words we speak, the emotions we feel. And how rightfully so!  

Mr. President, we stand at the brink of justified retribution, supported by most of the world. We have the means, supported by the outrage of the horror of the shock. You have the terrible, terrible weight of the decisions. All of this focuses on you and you feel us standing by you and you by us. No one in human history has been in this position.  

Mr. President, this place in which you stand, this time at which you live, calls for action, screams for revenge…requires strength. It is easy to wield the power and take the steps that could yield the deaths of those responsible and those that shield them. But, Mr. President, think how hollow that will feel. It will not bring back the thousands. It will not be done without causing thousands more to perish. I cannot think of a more difficult time in which to lead this country and affect this world. It is a time that calls for extraordinary strength and judgment. I urge you seek justice. But please, Mr. President. I urge you to seek justice, not revenge. I urge you to seek counsel of the Dali Lama, of Thich Nhat Hanh, of the Pope, of the goodness of man before you act, before you commit us, the world, into a downspin of violence, death, and continued terror. There are many paths, many alternatives; none of them easy. Please consider alternatives tempered by the sagacity that these men and men like them might offer.  

There is no easy path; but there is an easy reaction at this place in time. I urge you, Mr. President, to resist the easy reaction and search for the measured response. It is easy to react with violence and righteous vehemence. It is hard to act with compassionate justice. Please, Mr. President, look for actions that are as extraordinary as the time and place in which you find yourself. I do not know what this action is. But I know that it does not bring the world into a violent escalation. I urge you to take the harder, higher road. We know that revenge is not sweet. Our enemies expect a violent response. I urge you to take actions that will lead to justice and peace. 

Bill Haskell  

Berkeley