As a young child, I had the good fortune to be educated by a man of great wisdom and knowledge. He taught me the value of critical thinking and the joy of the written word, history and robust debate. Today, I received an email from him and he fell from his pedestal and, like a statue and monument to things past, he tumbled to the ground and I mourn his metaphorical death.
There have only been 3 men in my close personal association for whom I have held deep respect: my father, my teacher and a man who mentored me in my work career. Each for different reasons, but, in essence, because they displayed the same personality and character traits: conviction to their beliefs, decency, family values and an enormous and steadfast knowledge that our minds are our greatest asset and that freedom is sacrosanct.
My father, a child of the Great Depression, taught me to value food, clothing, shelter and the love of one’s parents. As a veteran of World War 2, he taught me the necessity of Patriotism and the love of God, King and Country. ( as the saying goes.)
He taught me that the Family Unit was a precious unit – not of currency to be traded – but to be protected and nurtured and held on a pedestal.
My old mentor from my working days taught me about integrity and honesty. How being successful could only be measured on a moral level. That, if in order to make a sale one had to lie, cheat or compromise one’s values, it was not a sale worth making. Far better to walk away than to lie or betray oneself.
My old teacher, now 90 ish, taught me to question, to debate and to see both sides of the argument. That only through what has been can we see who we are and what we will become. How knowledge is the lightbulb that illuminates the world and that the use of that knowledge must be beamed out and shared through sound education and an open mind. He taught me that being told what to do – without asking the key questions of:
“ Who, What, Where, When and Why and How ” – well, that would only make us slaves to indoctrination. He argued that education was not Indoctrination and that Journalists needed to report, not distort.
Yet, this morning, I received an email from him, letting me know how grateful he is that Jacinda Ardern has done a magnificent job and he hopes, despite his lack of support for her in the past, she is returned in the upcoming New Zealand election with a vastly increased vote.
I read the email several times and I even shared it with Redhead. She said
“ think about it... they were in total lockdown even their shopping done for them, only talked on the telephone to outsiders and relos… Then every day on the news you have "Big teeth" spouting about how she is taking care of you all etc etc. I think you would get brain washed. Months of that isolation and only mixing with the same brain washed people. I can see how it happened. “
Fair point Redhead. Fear and a Crisis are amazingly good educators. Suddenly, the Who, What, Where, when and Why went out the window and my hero turned in to a cowered old man in a matter of months.
Who did this? China.
What happened? They allowed a Virus to destroy our countries.
Where? Everywhere.
When? Some time between July or August of last year and the end of 2019.. it was, in my opinion, much earlier than we are being led to believe.
Why? To bring down Western Capitalist Societies.
How? Because we let them.
When Socialists and Stalin’s “ Useless Idiots “ are given the green light, all they need is a good crisis. And China gave it to them.
Ardern in New Zealand, Comrade Dan in Victoria Australia, Pluckaduck in Queensland etc got the football of the Corona Virus Crisis, they ran with it. As did the Leftist Governors in America.
Redhead has a neighbour, in her 70’s, who said “ I am scared that I am too scared to go out. “
She has a lawnmowing guy who said to her, when she expressed her anger at being treated like a child and being locked up ‘ But it is for your own good. “
My teacher said:
“ We inmates" were permitted to venture out into the Village grounds …..Police all over the country were stationed at both local and convenient major roading, stopping and questioning travellers etc asking where they were from and where they were going, but unless it was for essential services or medical attention etc, they were told to turn round and go back home!! Registration numbers etc were digitally recorded and any cases of not complying with what was permitted were later charged ......with a hefty fine..
Although infringements began to drop dramatically it didn't take the public long to realise they meant business!”
Think about it... who are the slaves now?
Here is a man I have respected, admired and put on a pedestal all my life, being grateful for being locked up and referring to himself as an inmate and seemingly grateful for being a prisoner in his own home?
Today, his statue fell down, his monument fell down and he fell off his pedestal. Not because someone tore it down - but because he rolled over, through fear, and surrendered through fear.
He tore his own monument down.
When people surrender, they surrender EVERYTHING.
The thing that gets me more than anything is that he never questioned. He just accepted.
They certainly did mean business, Sir. They meant to stop you from asking the very questions you taught me to always ask.
It was this very same teacher who told me, back in the 1960’s, almost 60 years ago to:
"Judge a man by his questions rather than his answers." - Voltaire
Yet he no longer questions - through Fear. And embraces his enslavement. After all..I know what my Dad would have said. "
