[etni] A Quote from Henry V -- still relevant today

From: harold <harold@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: etni@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Date: Tue, 04 Dec 2007 09:11:46 +0200
   Vis a vis today's Jerusalem Post headline:  "Teachers preparing for 'civil 
disobedience':  


    Old men forget: yet all shall be forgot, 
    But he'll remember with advantages 
    What feats he did that day: then shall our names. 
    Familiar in his mouth as household words 
    Harry the king, Bedford and Exeter, 
    Warwick and Talbot, Salisbury and Gloucester, 
    Be in their flowing cups freshly remember'd. 
    This story shall the good man teach his son; 
    And Crispin Crispian shall ne'er go by, 
    From this day to the ending of the world, 
    But we in it shall be remember'd; 
    We few, we happy few, we band of brothers; 

    Act V, sc. 3, Henry V 



and from Martin Luther King:
"
2) Nonviolent resistance does not seek to defeat or humiliate the opponent, but 
to win his friendship and understanding. The nonviolent resister must often 
express his protest through noncooperation or boycotts, but he realizes that 
noncooperation and boycotts are not ends themselves; they are merely means to 
awaken a sense of moral shame in the opponent. The end is redemption and 
reconciliation. The aftermath of nonviolence is the creation of the beloved 
community, while the aftermath of violence is tragic bitterness. 



LETTER FROM BIRMINGHAM JAIL* 
April 16, 1963 FROM "LETTER FROM A BIRMINGHAM JAIL "
You may well ask: "Why direct action? Why sit-ins, marches and so forth? Isn't 
negotiation a better path?" You are quite right in calling, for negotiation. 
Indeed, this is the very purpose of direct action. Nonviolent direct action 
seeks to create such a crisis and foster such a tension that a community which 
has constantly refused to negotiate is forced to confront the issue. It seeks 
so to dramatize the issue that it can no longer be ignored. My citing the 
creation of tension as part of the work of the nonviolent-resister may sound 
rather shocking. But I must confess that I am not afraid of the word "tension." 
I have earnestly opposed violent tension, but there is a type of constructive, 
nonviolent tension which is necessary for growth. Just as Socrates felt that it 
was necessary to create a tension in the mind so that individuals could rise 
from the bondage of myths and half-truths to the unfettered realm of creative 
analysis and objective appraisal, we must we see the need for nonviolent 
gadflies to create the kind of tension in society that will help men rise from 
the dark depths of prejudice and racism to the majestic heights of 
understanding and brotherhood...

In no sense do I advocate evading or defying the law, as would the rabid 
segregationist. That would lead to anarchy. One who breaks an unjust law must 
do so openly, lovingly, and with a willingness to accept the penalty. I submit 
that an individual who breaks a law that conscience tells him is unjust and who 
willingly accepts the penalty of imprisonment in order to arouse the conscience 
of the community over its injustice, is in reality expressing the highest 
respect for law...

Of course, there is nothing new about this kind of civil disobedience. ..To a 
degree, academic freedom is a reality today because Socrates practiced civil 
disobedience. In our own nation, the Boston Tea Party represented a massive act 
of civil disobedience.
[etni] A Quote from Henry V -- still relevant today

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