I commend the excellent, timely editorials [on the peace accord in Colombia and athletes protesting racial injustice by not standing for the national anthem] in the Sept. 26 issue. I appreciate your effort to bring reality to our understanding of violence in the world today. Your reference to Steven Pinker’s book, The Better Angels of Our Nature: Why Violence Has Declined, is very useful. “Fear is the enemy of peace,” from an article in a recent issue of The Mennonite, is so true. As Franklin Roosevelt once said, “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself” — meaning human beings do foolish things when we are unable to deal with our fears. It seems that we “haves” want the “have nots” to be quiet and not make us fearful. But peace will come only after justice is developed.

Chet Raber
Lititz, Pa.