We’re Just the Human Shields They Hide Behind

The world seems in pretty bad shape, but perhaps it’s a matter of perspective.

It’s very painful for those of us who focus on humanity as a whole, it’s very annoying for those who seek domination, and it’s very bewildering for those who just want to live their lives in peace and frankly, just don’t care about anyone outside their small circle of quotidian relationships. Not infrequently I wish I were one of the latter, but I’m not. For some inexplicable reason, a curse perhaps or perhaps just karma, I find myself trapped among the first group, and that’s an apparently hopeless position. One that too many of those I care for, fortunately for them, just can’t grasp, or perhaps just won’t grasp through sheer power of volition.

More and more frequently the world is racked by the disastrous consequences of decisions of those in power, decisions from which they don’t really suffer, at least not in terms of consequences. In fact, they’re expert at turning them to their advantage. Quite a talent although I wonder if, in the long term, it coincides with instincts for species preservation? Probably not but then self-preservation seems stronger, and that’s a short term view. The world we live in seems to be shaped by a series of reactive short term decisions, each a bit worse than the last. But for a tiny group, that’s ok. They’re doing fine. And if Leo Durocher was right, they always will.

The rest of us, whether we know it or not, we’re just the human shields they hide behind.
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© Guillermo Calvo Mahé; Manizales, 2015; all rights reserved