Introduction: The Anatomy of Violence and State Ethics
Violence is an inherent part of reality that cannot be entirely eliminated. Instead of striving for an unrealistic utopia of a world free from aggression, we must focus on its systemic reduction, transparency, and harm minimization. This article deconstructs the mechanisms of power in the public sphere, pointing toward pragmatic solutions—from education reform to professional standards for uniformed services. You will learn how to transform institutional violence into a controlled tool for protecting citizens, based on the principles of proportionality and necessity.
Schools and Local Government: The Craft of Relationships and Safe Spaces
Schools must become a laboratory for the craft of relationships, moving away from rigid hierarchies toward emotion mapping and learning de-escalation micro-rituals. Instead of punishment, the key lies in restorative justice and contracts for future behavior. The effectiveness of such actions is measured by specific indicators: the time from conflict reporting to mediation and the percentage of disputes resolved through genuine agreement. This forms the foundation of a secular anti-violence catechism, which teaches young people to recognize the mechanisms of shame that lead to aggression.
In the local government sphere, safety is designed through risk mapping. A city free from violence is a space without "blind alleys," featuring efficient night transport and soft intervention points. Young citizens expect the state to act as a guarantor of security that invests in a culture of dialogue before mass events rather than demonstrating force. Lessons drawn from anecdotes about violence remind us that blind obedience destroys the objective, and power without loyalty is merely a fragile tool of control.
Police and Media Standards: Ethics and the Deconstruction of Symbolic Violence
Modern policing relies on algorithms of proportionality and transparency. Body-worn cameras serve as the objective memory of the institution, while early intervention systems detect symptoms of officer burnout before tragedy strikes. The role of politicians as guardians of the state's monopoly on violence is to ensure external oversight and transparency. A state that loses control over its language, employing the rhetoric of a "civilizational war," loses its legitimacy to use force on the streets.
The media plays a crucial role in limiting symbolic violence. Newsrooms must implement a harm minimization code, avoiding dehumanization and stigmatizing labels. Cultural violence, hidden in aggressive headlines and a lack of context, can be more dangerous than physical violence. The media's duty is to maintain debate hygiene and conduct language audits to prevent the creation of "enemies on an industrial scale." Transparency regarding data on the use of force and public reporting is the only way to build social trust.
Practical Ethics and Religions: Lessons from Kołakowski and Borderline Situations
According to Leszek Kołakowski, violence is permissible only in defense of life and liberty, when its purpose is beyond any doubt legitimate. Borderline situations, such as Nangar Khel or the crisis on the Polish-Belarusian border, expose state paralysis resulting from a lack of clear procedures. Structural violence, which involves closing off zones to public opinion, strikes at the foundations of democracy. The principle of subsidiarity makes coercion the final stage of intervention, always preceded by an attempt at dialogue.
The world's great religions define theological limits on the use of force, emphasizing the protection of the innocent and justice free from hatred. The Jewish principle of saving a life, the Christian theory of just war, and the Islamic concept of jihad as internal effort all converge on one point: violence must never be an end in itself. The state must be wiser than the crowd and resistant to the temptation of tyranny, using force only as a trust granted by society to protect the individual.
Summary
The true strength of a state lies not in brutality, but in its capacity for self-reflection and error correction. Instead of pursuing a utopia, we should build systems that make the use of force predictable, measurable, and subject to social control. It is the ability to listen, mediate, and maintain procedural transparency that defines the boundaries of our civilization. Violence, even when necessary, always leaves a scar—therefore, the duty of a good state is to ensure it acts only as the ultimate firefighter, not the community's arsonist.
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