You seem to focus on the physical nature of violence, which is understandable since the previous article dealt with combat yoga. However, since you’ve expounded on the necessity of violence, it should be noted that violence can take many forms, mentally, emotionally, as well as physically. If you agree with this, then it starts to challenge some of the notions you are discussing. If something is necessary, there is no choice to be made, it just happens, like your example of breathing. You would argue that violence is always a choice so long as you believe it is a choice, but I think it’s not that black and white.

Part of the problem is that the definition of violence is not clear here, which I alluded to earlier. Violence is a many colored beast that is just as prevalent on Wall Street and as it is in Iraq. The necessity of violence becomes even cloudier when you consider Hollywood. Human beings have some sort of preoccupation with violence, to varying degrees of course, and people will find outlets for it. Movies like Transformers bank on it. If violence becomes entertainment, is entertainment necessary or unnecessary? Even people who don’t believe in war cannot help but catch a glimpse of a particularly gory freeway accident. Here the violence that occurred may not have been used to defend any rights, or take them away, it may have just happened.

So, I would argue that violence is more than just something people can choose or not choose to engage in, it is a part of human nature that must be managed just like anything else. Sometimes, as scary as it is, violence is just a part of life, like breathing, and if this is true, philosophical arguments cannot make it anymore necessary or unneccessary.