The View from a Drawbridge

“Words without action are meaningless” he said to me during our ongoing debate about hypocrisy. “Mother Teresa didn’t have a blog.” Ouch. But you know what, I still disagree. Words, when executed properly and offered at the right place, at the right time, about the right topic, can change the world. Here are some words, in no particular order, that have made an impact:

• The Magna Carta

• Martin Luther’s ninety-five theses

• The Rosetta Stone

• Sun Tzu’s The Art of War

• Darwin’s On the Origin of Species

• The Declaration of Independence

• The US Constitution

• The Mayan Codex

• The Emancipation Proclamation

• The Gettysburg Address

• The Diaries of Anne Frank

• The Bible

• The Quran

• The Torah

• Anything by Shakespeare

No, these aren’t blogs, but I suspect that in many cases they would have been in blog form if blogs had existed at the time. And no, I’m not comparing my often aimless verbal ramblings to religious doctrine. What I’m saying is that one should not underestimate the ability of words to make changes. Words are action. And because they inspire further action, political prisoners throughout the world have been jailed for their words. In some countries, reporters have been killed. Words transmit knowledge, and knowledge is power.

Action is great. Action combined with words is even better. Martin Luther King springs to mind. But words alone should not be discounted. We can’t all be Mother Teresa. But we can still transmit a message for good, and that, in my opinion, is not too shabby.