The Wheel

The Buddhists say "To live a good life, have good thoughts."

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The growing field of neuroplasticity tells us that the brain is constantly rewiring itself in response to external stimuli.  The brain is constantly changing as its synapses fire.

The neuroscientists sum this up with a pithy statement: "The way it fires is the way it wires."

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In some countries, the people are told this, over and over, for entertainment:

The bad guy doesn't have to persuade people to do his bidding.  He doesn't have to cooperate or negotiate.  That is too difficult.  The bad guy is stronger than that.
He gets people to do his bidding by punching and kicking them, and by shooting them.

A good guy can stop a bad guy by punching and kicking him, and by shooting him.

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In some countries, the people that live there believe they have the right to bear arms.  This is another way of saying that they believe that everyone has the right to be able to kill anyone.

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"All experience is preceded by mind,
Led by mind,
Made by mind.
Speak or act with a corrupted mind,
And suffering follows
As the wagon wheel follows the hoof of the ox."

- The Dhammapada, Ch. 1