The Lust for Power
The love of Power is the root of all evil. Not “the love of money” in writings attributed to Apostle Paul to Timothy, for money is merely an enticing perk of Power. Power is like an intoxicating drug that can never satisfy the desire for more. The more power one consumes, the more one desires and eventually demands. Once exposed to its perks, gifts, and entitlements, one can never return to a life of humility.
Living the life among the elites, the demigods, the one percenters, those who give the orders but never take them as they impatiently snap their fingers to have their underlings jump through hoops to comply with the elites’ commands humbly.
If any of the above is true, it explains why our world is devolving into a Hell of our own making, because the lure of Power can infect all of us. The lure of Power is irresistible to the powerless. After all, who would gladly embrace a life of grueling groveling beneath the thumbs of tyrants? When the powerless see an opportunity to climb the ladder, or level up by backstabbing and stepping on another, they’ll crush the calloused hands of those hanging on to their last vestige of pride and dignity.
From Presidents to Prime Ministers, Titans of Wall Street, Hollywood moguls, CEOs of Fortune 100 companies, and lesser demigods—the Peasants of society, who claw their way to prominence, qualify as living the life of someone addicted to Power.
The powerful make decisions on how those on the bottom exist. They decide what the bottom-feeders eat, how they work, how long and hard they work, as well as how they’re compensated for their strenuous labor. The powerless don’t get a seat at the table, no more than they get a vote that the powerful elites haven’t watered down to a meaningless one.
I’ve been inspired to pen this post as I’m forced to witness another military conflict that will decimate the lives of hundreds of thousands (conservatively counting) while severely diminishing the lives of the survivors. Yes, as history has repeatedly warned, the powerless will often suffer so that the powerful can profit. Blood will be spilled, limbs will be lost, and dreams of karmic justice will die another cruel death.
Unfortunately, when the fog of this war clears and some semblance of truth is revealed, the political demagogues will convince the powerless to prepare to fight against the next false foe, but for nothing to fight for. The Powerful is never penniless, just pitiless. The Powerful views the powerless as less than equals, but as valuable tools to keep the wheels of their world turning uninterruptedly.
Considering how many lessons the powerless have been exposed to over the many millennia, I remain amazed at why the perennially downtrodden never realized who, how, and why the ruling elites have subjugated them so effectively and consistently. Surely, there were glaring clues, if only breadcrumbs of truths left by accident over time, that could enlighten them to the true causes of their plight. Surely, there were those amongst the hordes of the hopeless who sensed the blatant injustices being pressed upon them.
Well, I have seen more than enough to tolerate more of the same without doing my level best to sound the alarm. If the powerless choose not to listen, that is their prerogative. But those who know have a moral duty to share that knowledge for the sake of humanity and a better future for all of us.
Lee Bines
Just Whispering Out Loud!
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