What's the Cause?
Whenever there is a tragedy, wrongdoing, or failure that happens in the world, we are quick to point fingers. We instantly go to the blame game of "this is your fault" or "this is their fault." It automatically becomes a punishment situation, where we seek out who is responsible and try to punish or avenge a failure or misstep.
Not many people really sit down and ask the question "what caused this?" in a serious and legitimate way without looking for a reason to point fingers. When you sit down and ask that question and really think about it and investigate, I think your focus starts shifting from a strict punishment and retribution focus to one of reparation and healing. You start breaking down the source and the timeline of events and circumstance that led to the problem, and if you develop a complex understanding of that cause, it can lead to a more well-rounded approach to solving it and addressing it.
Understanding also leads to more empathy and less fear, since you have a better grasp of the situation. When you understand something, you don't fear it as much. If you know what the cause is, know how circumstances and events progress over time, and actually understand the cause, progression, and effect of a situation or system, than you can actually do something effective and be thoroughly successful at solving that problem.
Understanding cause and effect of things like crimes, sicknesses, social and economic problems, and just worldly problems in general is like understanding the parts of a system and being able to define their properties and relationships. Once this thorough understanding is developed, you can actually solve problems with greater effectiveness and greater precision.
Asking the question "what is the cause?" is the most important question to ask when you try to solve a problem. If the problem is complex, than the cause was probably complex and had a complicated history and development. The solution to complex problems with complex causes will also most likely need to be complex and cover a lot of bases.
True justice in circumstances of crimes or violations only really comes from a thorough understanding of the causes of such things. Once you identify the cause, the true cause, of a situation or circumstance in life, than prevention becomes easier and the tactics you use to address those problems become more effective in the future.
I think that justice would be more effective and better served if we look for what actually causes the tragedies and travesties of our world and not just who is to blame. When you find the cause, you can solve the problem, and more often than not its not just a "who did this?" its a "what caused this?"
You identify the source of the problem with the intent to repair it and heal it, like a good surgeon or a good mechanic, not just punish it. It is better to fix a broken thing than to throw it away or destroy it.
It redeems that thing, and saves it from being wasted. It is a far nobler approach, and far more just because of its mercy. Healing and restoring are far greater acts of justice on a broken system or broken person than punishment and retribution ever have been. They rebuild and renew things and people, not destroy them.
When you know the cause, healing and restoring becomes all the more easier, and your focus becomes more like a surgeon with a scalpel cutting out the impurities or corruptions of a system and healing a problem rather than a judge with a gavel...or executioner with an axe...who only understands punishment and retribution as the solution
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