The reason why the [nation] lacks unity and is broken in heaps, is because man is disunited with himself. – Ralph Waldo Emerson

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from Pultusk Poland, szamysz with Beat No. 488

 

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cover art
Thinker by Magdelena A. Tkacz
Berlin Wall by Justin Leighton/Redux
Fear by JordanRobin

Five Reasons Why Thought & Reason
Trump Fear & Mongering
written & edited by Kendall F. Person

1

On April 6, 1994, an airplane carrying the presidents of Rwanda and Burundi was shot out of the sky, killing everyone on board. The incident is considered the breaking point leading to a civil war, that would leave the world in absolute shock. In less than 30 days, over a million people – human beings – with lives, families and friends, were slaughtered in ethnic cleansing so fierce, an on-the-ground missionary was quoted by Time Magazine as saying, “There are no devils left in hell. They are all in Rwanda.”  {Why? The Killing Fields of Rwanda}

2

On October 23, 1983, in Beirut, Lebanon, two trucks struck separate buildings, both housing the Multinational Force. It was  determined, that the simultaneous crashes were neither an accident nor a coincidence and that, in neither case, was the power of the impact responsible for the carnage that left 299 dead. Rather, it was the drivers themselves, acting as human ammunition, detonating explosive devices prior to impact, marking the time and the date, the modern day suicide bomber was born.

3

April 29, 1992, Simi Valley, California, 12 men and women would exit the jury deliberation room, enter the packed courtroom, carrying in hand, one of the most anticipated verdicts in Los Angeles County history. A videotaped beating of a man named Rodney King, by four police officers had fooled the City of Angels into believing the decision was a foregone conclusion. Almost immediately after the verdict had been read, acquitting all four officers of the charges against them,  the second most populated city in the United States of America, erupted into a lawless inferno, leaving 2000 injured and 53 dead.

4

And on November 12, 1991, in the Indonesian archipelago, a modern day massacre took place. The people of the tiny island nation of Timor-Leste had waged a spiritual battle for their countries freedom. With the game of chess reaching a crescendo, and tension high on both sides, a large crowd of East Timorese participated in a nonviolent but vocal, protest march. But something  in the wind must have blown in from the wrong direction, because the Indonesian army would unleash a hail of gunfire, leaving 250 people dead.

Each of these seemingly unrelated tragedies, occurring at different times, for different reasons and in different parts of the world, are all connected, not by any perceived parallel or clever analogy, but rather, by what each missed. Not considered in Rwanda, off the table in Lebanon, lost in Los Angeles and denied in East Timor. Each chose the path of self-destruction, for all had the same thing in abundance. However, sanity and law and order would be restored before the people – of the same nation – could annihilate one another.

Question: So what was missing and what was in abundance, that draws them together?

5

The Great Wall of China was one of the most extensive construction projects ever completed. While it was seen as a manifestation of power and provoked fear, it was an absolute failure in its intended purpose: to keep Barbarians from entering.Nonetheless, China still stands. The Berlin Wall, however, was conceived by the now defunct nation of East Germany to keep its own citizens from fleeing. It not only proved to be a solid mechanism in preventing escape, but it was perceived by the outside world as a symbol of isolationism and oppression.

 
Answer: Thought & Reason and Fear & Mongering, respectively.

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