Man vs man

The inhumanity of man against man has dated as far back as the origin of man himself. Through the generations, despite changes and development in culture, science and technology, the arts, information gathering and dissemination, and the general everyday status of man, he has persisted in his wickedness towards his fellow creature. It is therefore not out of line to suggest that in every other aspect of his daily living, man has allowed change to take place, except in the area of his war against his fellow man.
This has been given a lot of coats and explanations which try to justify this devilish nature in man. Under the guise of religion, tribalism, poverty, vengeance and sometimes plain old ignorance, man has encroached on the rights of his neighbor. This is not a conclusion that man is wicked by nature, it only shows a tendency to lean towards the dark side of his nature. Man, unlike other animals, seems to derive pleasure from causing his fellow animal pain.
Nevertheless, it would be presumptuous to assume that all men are inherently sadistic. Over decades and passing generations, we have had examples of men who were worthy of being called saints. These sacrificed what they had, be it time, energy, resources at the altar of emancipation of their kind. Worthy examples include Mother Theresa, Martin Luther King jnr, Nelson Mandela, Thomas Edison, Sir Isaac Newton and a host of others too many to be mentioned in this treatise.
Man has enslaved his fellow men for many centuries, the going price for a slave is about $13000.Slavery persists in this day and age. It is more common in Africa and Asia from where the slaves are taken to the West, especially Europe and North America. These slaves undergo extreme psychological and physical trauma, and many [especially the women and children] are forced into sexual slavery and prostitution.
Evil under the toga of tribalism is another rampant phenomenon. Genocide has been recorded in countries like Rwanda, Iraq, and Liberia, to mention a few. Wars between countries like Israel and Palestine, Ethiopia and Eritrea, Bosnia, Serbia and Croatia; civil strife in Somalia, Sierra Leone and Afghanistan are but a few of the vast numbers of examples of violence occurring between groups. Millions of lives have been lost in these conflicts for no just cause. Men have maimed, killed and raped their fellow men for no other reason other than belonging to a different group.
Religious fanaticism and extremism is a very prominent excuse for carrying out evil. It has taken on a new modern face-terrorism. This is a fear that is now engraved on the minds of everybody. Who will be the next victim? No one is ever sure of the next target of these terrorists, who range from the petty, local fanatics who wreak havoc on innocent victims who are not of their beliefs, to international terrorists who strike fear into the hearts of presidents and have large resources at their disposal for carrying out their nefarious activities. These have two things in common; they strike innocent, unsuspecting victims who do not even know what they die for, and they thrive on the fear they instill in people.
Time has proven that most of these ills that men subject each other to are caused by a deep-seated greed and envy. Man has always wanted what was not his. Leaders of groups, from the small to whole countries, mislead their followers into committing these deeds for selfish purposes. Behind these deeds is usually a quest for power and domination.
Man should learn to tolerate his fellow man, because this evil in him has only led to backwardness and retardation in places where it is allowed free-rein. Man cannot expect to move forward if he cannot tame the devil in him. Where we are today is a result of the concerted efforts of men who tamed their evil side allowing the good I them to come to the fore. These have acted unselfishly on the behalf of mankind and not only with benefits for themselves in mind. As long as man continues to think only of himself, he is a pawn to the evil that lies in him.