The above is the title of a famous poem by the incomparable, Rudyard Kipling, of which, the significance and the meaning of this poem, back when it was written, in the era of colonialism by Western European powers, is just as apt in its message and form as it was back then. For, far too often, we are inclined as a people to devolve into a version of tribalism, in which, those that are of the same sort of milieu and mindset are the “we;” whereas, those others that would appear to be so different, or unfavored, or unpopular, are therefore the “they;” of which, never shall the twain ever meet, so as to join together into one body politic, or one community.
So then, in a mindset in which the world, or a nation, or a city, or a community, or even a family, is subdivided into two opposing sides, of which, those on the one side believe that they hold the moral high ground and are entitled; whereas, those on the other side, feel either equally entitled to such as well, or believe that they are misunderstood or marginalized, then the only possible result is going to be one of conflict, discord, and disharmony. This thus signifies, to a very meaningful extent, why there is so much war; whether that be between one nation against another, or a civil war within a given nation -- as well as the salient fact that in long established countries, such as America, that there is at the present time a disappointingly high number of domestic disturbances, civil unrest, and crime.
Those then, that cannot get pass their own self-imposed tribal identity to become more inclusive to others, or at least have the courtesy and maturity to be more tolerant of the right of other people to live their lives via the autonomy of their own being, as well as of their own self-determination, don’t seem to understand that a us vs. them type of mentality, is never going to make for a just and satisfying community. Each of us needs to do a better job, as well as to be more determined, that we will not be destructive and hurtful in what we so say and do, but rather we should take it upon our shoulders, to step up to the plate, and to thereby be the “repairer of the breach,” so that each of us can thus better see the unalienable rights of the other, and hence our collective duty to be part of the process, to make out of many, one.
All of the troubles of this world, can be laid at the feet of all those, that are unable to see or to believe that each one of us has been gifted with the same unalienable rights; of which, in essence, no one person is superior or inferior to the other. Further, we need to take to heart, that we actually are all in this together, and therefore that there never was a they, for we are all equal creations of the One, and not of the many.