YOU TOO?

  If you are confused these days, put aside your worry. Most sane people are in the same rather unsteady, leaking boat. Apparently, whatever makes sense is slowly but surely, and not so slowly at that, disappearing and unbelievable conclusions and data reports are taking over. In fact, one does not know how, when, if, to trust anything, be it in print or on social media or in some other format that I am not aware of or have stayed away from. Confusion is the new status quo.

When trying to make order out of lives which had become messy and over demanding, or which has lost the ability to make sense, that quest is generally aided and abetted by information results. How is one to choose, though, when totally conflicting presentations of "facts” are front and center, almost rabidly contradictory, and you are left standing there with the most confused at sea and totally lost facial expression.

It is especially most difficult to know what to do, to know if one has to change previously held ideas and beliefs or not. For example, most of us were told as little children and even not so little, as adults, that if you are lost, or have a problem, especially one concerning safely, seek a uniformed security provider, even if the closest one is a mall cop. However, these days unfortunately, one is not necessarily any safer with said provider.  We have seen too many instances where those charged with the responsibility to keep public decorum and safety for all concerned as primary duties, are, of late, quite delinquent in their application of said responsibility. 

Oaths are forgotten. The dividing line between private and public has almost disappeared, and when private thoughts and beliefs conflict with public expression, well, suffice it to say that we have trouble, right here in our cities, our places of business, our entertainment venues, even in our homes. Too many have forgotten that personal feelings and public responsibility might be very different, miles apart, but the onus is on a seemingly certified provider, an officer of the accepted laws, to do what he has sworn to do, to uphold, rather than what he/she might wish to actually do. 

We know that obeying orders blindly leads to authoritarian and even worse governments of political entities and the populations within. We can see the worst of those parameters whether we look backwards or into the status quo or into the future. Fascism, communism any and all extremes, are totally oppositional to a sane and caring and rationally functioning society. When one blindly obeys orders, in particular those of criminal content, against the rules of humanity, immoral and ugly, against what is right, then society has no place to go but down. However, in the meanwhile, we are stuck in a danger zone and what to do rings loud, and clear and often in our heads.

That is not to say that all have compromised their morality, for there are many out there who do their job and go above and beyond. However, what is one to do when clad in the uniform, caught within the parameters and onus of a sworn oath? What does one do when one finds himself oneself within such a situation? Rife with personal and private danger. Where and how and when do we draw the line? 

If one's boss, one's superior in the direct line of command, receives an order which is then transmitted to you, telling you, insisting, that you must obey the given command. Even should it appear to be contrary to accepted law, contrary to the rules of humanity, but you cannot, for it is wrong, manifestly so. What does one do with this confusion? How does one address this challenge to one's own tenets, one's own creeds? 

To whom do you owe loyalty? To whom and to what do you owe obedience? Which path do you follow and what will be the cost to you, with whatever decision you make, whatever action you take, or do not take? Have you given up all rights to refuse, to disobey inherently immoral laws? Must you be brave and bold and be true to your own morality, forswear your personal safety and do what's right? 

What is to be your road of choice? In actuality, though one choice might seem to be the easier path, the one of least resistance, there is actually no easy path. This conflict within yourself has unknown future consequences. Hence, one must be brave and bold and able to overcome all worries and concerns about personal safety and do what is right. Even though many will shout and disagree with your opted for path.

Furthermore, what does want to do or can do when the person issuing these contrary commands is known to be demented and/or of authoritarian bent, avidly desirous of engineering himself into a position of forever power? And has already engaged in many other situations similar to this, abrogating the laws of society, disregarding the judiciary system and totally oppositional to the constitution of the nation. What is one to do? 

If the issuer of these nasty commands is the President of the nation or his elected or appointed representative, surely danger awaits one who disregards the command. On the other hand, justice might be delayed, but it inevitably will have its day and going along to get along will prove to be a flimsy alibi nor acceptable excuse for immoral, criminal behavior. When a nation returns to sanity, willingly or not, and its prior laws are shown to be both criminal and inimical to humanity, and are overturned, what then? Where does your personal choice leave you at that point in time?  Where are personal responsibility and the consequences of that personal choice at that point in time? Are you a hero or a despised outcast?

Now, no more ifs, ands, or buts. For these choices are real in our time, have come to roost uncomfortably too near upon us. When members of ICE are told to disobey the rules already in place. When brutality is held up to be exemplified. When people are denied rights. What are you to do in your reality? Do you speak up? Do you keep your head down and your thoughts to yourself? Do you go home and throw up the abuses of the day? Do you understand that you are being co-opted into an illegal, unauthorized force? Do you look at your child and think what it might be for him, if tables were turned?

Or, you are an officer of the government and the highest court in the land has passed down a decision which puts you in the wrong and an order to cease and desist. But your superior is claiming to be under orders of the man in the throes of dementia and insists that you follow through. That the consequences for you, if you do not follow through will be dire. What do you do?

Or you are an officer of high rank or private of the lowest rank, or anywhere in between, what do you do when your oath to the people and your oath to obey the Commander-in-Chief clash, with huge, overwhelming discordant sound. Do you do the illegal, the immoral, the profoundly anti-constitutional demand made by that same commander in chief who is violating all laws of this nation? Or do you shrug your shoulders and say, oh well, gotta' do what I gotta' do.  

Where, in fact, do any of us stand? How do we make a wise choice, a proper choice, a moral choice in these Hobbesian issues? Furthermore, what if it is not only, we, ourselves, as individuals, who will endure the resultant consequences? The filth will rain down upon our families and friends as well.

I would hope that you and me, both of us, all of us, would make the moral and proper choices. I hope that we and those who depend upon us, those to whom we are responsible, will be as wise and brave and bold and righteous in their choices.

However, in all truth, none of us know what we might do. We might hope and pray for guidance, for strength, but we are also humans. And humans are prone to errors in their thinking. The times we are living in today and the times we are going to be living through tomorrow, will be reflective of the difficult choices many of our ancestors had to make. When we meet up with them again will we say, will we be able to say, that the courage that belonged to them yesterday inspired us to do the right things in our todays and equally will inspire and encourage our descendants in the tomorrows to come.

If you can say you know the answer now to these questions, if you feel that you can be 150% sure of your behavior, of your choices, well, kudos to you, fot I have great doubts about that reality. Even as I  hope I would do the right thing, make the proper choice, but no one ever knows unless we are wearing those same shoes and walking those same roads.

This is what is awaiting us if we do not wake up, shake ourselves out, and rid ourselves of all the ugliness and the falsehoods and gird ourselves with the moral strength necessary to persist on keeping to the righteous paths.