The peaceful warrior Way

Some people say that self defense, the Warrior Way, martial arts, etc. its all violent, fear based, and hateful. And they don't want to live in fear and violence. They want peace and they want to spread love! Well thats great. But you can get attacked at any moment. Anyone at any time can inflict violence upon you, and involve you into their war, not because you deserve it, but for their own reasons, of which you may know nothing about. If all you can do is cower in the corner and wait until you get rescued, if you cannot give the attacker a response of equal or greater violence, to defend yourself and yours, than you are not a pacifist, you are weak and pathetic. And that's really all you are, weak and pathetic, and not peaceful. Because you have allowed and enabled violence, with your inaction. Because you didn't think through very deeply the implications of not having self defense, in the situations that could realistically arise, you and yours could get seriously harmed, again and again. Until you learn the lesson and become the type of person who CAN inflict massive damage, who is skilled at violence, and can wield it masterfully, if absolutely needed. But chooses to treat others with love, compassion, and respect, because that is the heart based way to live, that is the right thing to do. If you have cultivated great power, and you have the freedom to do anything at all with it, and you choose to create peace with it, then you can honestly say you are choosing peace. If you are a harmless weakling who has no choice but to not fight, because you know you'll get crushed, thats not you choosing peace. Thats you having no choice but to stay out of the way of things you know you can't handle.