“One day we must come to see that peace is not merely a distant goal we seek, but that it is a means by which we arrive at that goal. We must pursue peaceful ends by peaceful means.”
-- Martin Luther King, Jr.

“The means are the ends in the making” stands in elegant contrast to the more commonly quoted “the end justifies the means.”

This contrast reveals the cause-and-effect relationship between the means we choose and our desired ends. Because we don’t fully comprehend this relationship, we continue to teeter between these two concepts, sometimes using one to guide our actions, then the other.

For example, one of America’s founding heroes, George Washington, understood that “the means are the ends in the making” when he established a clear precedent against torture while he guided the Revolutionary War. Washington knew that torture would result in feelings of hatred and acts of revenge, undermining a peaceful outcome.

In spite of this, the persistence of the belief that “the end justifies the means” is still evident in America in 2008. Many in the government advocate for using torture in an attempt to obtain information. A trustworthy peace will never be constructed on a foundation corrupted by torture.

If our process is flawed by “us and them” thinking, the abuse of power, disregard for human rights, exclusion, violence, war or any number of selfish, unethical actions, we will never achieve a result that meets anyone’s needs for security and well-being.

Bombs -- even “smart” bombs -- cannot produce social justice, only justice can produce justice; only compassion can produce compassion, only peaceful means can produce and prolong a peaceful world. As Gandhi said, we must “be the change we wish to see in the world.”

Instead of war, we can choose:

	To engage in nonviolent conflict resolution processes like South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission that prevented a predicted bloodbath and allowed for justice, healing and forgiveness.
	To encourage humanitarian foreign aid like The Peace Corps which helps end the impoverished conditions that lead to turmoil and unrest.
	To adhere to international law through structures like The International Criminal Court and the International Court of Justice. Imagine how different our world would be today if the perpetrators of 9/11 had been brought to justice through a civilized, legal system.
	And to collaborate with other countries through organizations like the United Nations which needs the full participation of its members to realize its own ideals of mutual respect and peaceful resolution of conflict.