One principle I always try to stand behind is words over weapons. I feel that in almost any situation possible, no matter what the extremes, if everyone involved followed this one principle, the situation could be resolved without the use of violence. In my opinion it's always fair, no matter how frustrated you may be with someone, to use your words before you think about violence.
The reason why I feel so strongly about this principle is because my parents made it very clear to me when I was growing up to use my words when I was frustrated and not my fists. In my household, from the day my siblings and I were born, we were never allowed to hit each other, and it created a very peaceful environment. It took away a lot of fear, and allowed us to be honest with each other when we were frustrated and upset.
The same values were even bestowed onto me at my old school, Near North Montessori. The classrooms were a little untraditional from the usual school desks and chalkboards. We were allowed to walk around to different areas of the classroom to pick what we wanted to work on, where we wanted to sit, and who we wanted to socialize with. With this much freedom, our teachers constantly had an expectation that we would use our words with each other and not violence. It would be near impossible for the teacher to keep track of every kid in the classroom at once.
With my home and school environments free of violence on a normal day basis, it took away a lot of fear for me when I was a kid, and allowed me to mature into someone who's last resort is to use violence. This is why I believe so strongly that if everyone could just follow this principle, no matter what extreme, there would be no need for violence after all.
