I agree with Katie that government will find a reason to make things violent. If the people aren't doing what a government wants them to do, then they'll do whatever they can and use whatever force they believe is necessary to get the country's attention. However, Syria's government has gone too far in torturing and killing it's own people. If it's only kept to nonviolence, then there usually is no clear "winner" whereas in war, there is.

I agree that the people of Syria cannot do this on their own, their own government officials have turned against them so the people of Syria need some other authority figures to be involved. The government is feeling strong and powerful because of the violence and killing, but if another country gets involved and helps out the people, then it could be a wake up call to the government that they're not as powerful as they thought and need to stop what they're doing. It's not an easy thing to do, they won't just "let" people come in and get rid of the government and change it so things could get even worse and more violent if another country gets involved.

I agree, they should exhaust every peaceful option before fighting since people's lives are lost and usually not much is accomplished

That's not always true, look at the civil rights movement in the US, we were depriving people of their rights and they spoke up and things changed. Martin Luther King Jr. always protested peacefully

I think that people should take control of there government at the first sign of distress. People should not have to wait till the situation multiplies in to something much worse before they start taking control, no government in the world should have to much power that they wont be able to hold on to it. If the citizens start to rebel then the government should lay down there power and give it to the people.

I agree with most of what For said, he said "People should stand up for what they believe in, most of the time." what i don't agree with is the "most of the time". I think that people should stand up for their rights no matter what. Other people need to know what you think, that does't mean keeping some of it to your self.

I think that people should take control of their government when they are in danger of if they're living in an unsafe environment. If it's not giving it's people what they need or not letting the country have its rights, then the people should definitley do something about it. I agree with Ben, saying that people should think about whether or not overthrowing the government in a violent and costly way will be an effective way to change their country before they actually do something about it.

I agree with Ford because people shouldn't just overthrow their government just because they don't agree with something the government does or says. However, when their rights are being taken away, they should make changes.

I agree that Syria needs the help of our country or other countries in the world. They havent completely fixed the issue on their own, so we should help them take the initiative to make some major changes.

I think that sometimes a government can be almost blinded by there own power and often are not as greatly affected by a decision that they make as an everyday citizen may be. In this case, i definitely think that the people need to stand up and make a clear point that there needs to be change. Government was originally created by and for the people, so if the people under the government can't stand up and say that they need a change, doesn't that defeat some of the purpose? No matter what, not everyone is going to be perfectly happy with how things work, but if a lot of people stand up, there could be a change.

Yes Ford I did mean to say in a bad way sorry for confussion:)

I also agree with Katie. The government can only take things so far before they get out of hand therefore making things unfair which practically in itself gives the people the right to stand up for themselves and make a change. Sorry I didn't exactly know how to word that so if its confusing sorry :)

People should take matters into their own hands when the govenment stops protecting their natural rights. Once this happens, then the people have the right to overthrow the government in a calm and orderly way. These people in Syria are not recieving the protection that they are entitled to. Threfore, the best decision for them is to try and revolt against their govenment in a peaceful and civil way. If they do not get what they need from revolting this way, then they may eventually need to resort to harsher methods of revolution, like war or a riot.

I agree with you that the people have the right to take action. After all, the peoples cooperation is the foundation for a balanced and sucessful govenment, andthey have the right to make sure the govenment is treating them fairly.

I agree with you that the people must take the consequencces of what happens to them after they take action against the govenment. A good govenment would reactly responcibly and calmy, but a bad govenment could respond with more unfairness.

I agree with Ford that a person should not get in trouble with the federal government for speaking their mind because in the Constitution we are given the freedom of speech. I also think that your freedom of speech rights are limited because you don't have the right to publicly speak against the government.

I believe that people have the right to take matters into their own hands when it comes to their government becoming corrupt. I mean who wants to live in a country when the government is not stable ans is partially taking away rights of their citizens. The government should be helping people feel safe and not make them feel scared to wake up in the morning and not know what is going to happen in their countries government and if it is going to change their lives. People need to speak up if they believe their government is doing something wrong so they can fix it.

I agree. Like Morgan said, they most likely already tried a peaceful approach in trying to change their government, but it hasn't worked. If the government is resorting to violence, they definitely won't listen to anything peaceful. Sometimes you have to do something drastic to get the government to notice. Everyone has the right to a good life and if the government Isn't allowing that, then it's time for a change.

I completely agree with Haley. If someone feels that the government is doing something wrong, a citizen has an absolute right to do something about it or take it into their own hands.

Sorry I am so late, but I also agree with Libby about how the government can be blinded by its own power. Maybe they think that they're so right about everything decision they make that they don't realize how many people are going through financial problems or not being able to support their own family. Their are so many people losing their jobs and not being able to get another job for a long time. Families and people around the US need help and the government seems to not be doing anything about this.

And if it really takes people in the US taking this into their own hands and that's one of the only ways to fix, what's the problem with that?

I agree with this because if government isn't doing their job and taking care of their responsibilities, then the people have the right to get upset and want to change things. The government is supposed to provide with us a safe and secure feeling. When the people in Libya saw that the people of Egypt were able to successfully take control of their government they decided to rise up.

I believe that people should take matters into their own hands when the government is harming the people, or if the government is not doing their job and leaving the people unprotected. The job of the government is to protect the people, and without a proper government the people will be unsafe. Citizens have the right to change the government if they are living in constant fear of their lives, because that proves that the government is not doing the job that it was made to do.

I agree, people should not be affected in a bad way by their government, because that is not why the government was originally created. The government should put the minds of citizens at peace, not cause them to suffer or live in fear.

People should take matters into their own hands when the government has pushed them to their breaking point. whether this is by invading citizen's privacy, taking away their basic liberties, or physically harming citizens does not matter. Once a government has pushed you to your limits you must respond. Violence should be the last resort in solving this response. All peaceful options should be explored before violence is ever an option. Sometimes peaceful attempts will be tried and failed leaving violence as the only option, but every situation is different and no two should be treated in the exact same way.

In my eyes, people should take action when the government refuses to respond and/or is corrupt. At that moment, the people need to push for a new government. The only way they will get a new government is by support from the UN, which they should really be doing more besides slapping Syria on the wrist. They should be doing what they did with Libya and Egypt and start supplying the rebels so they can successfully form a new government.