A SELFISH MAN'S INJURED PRIDE

 



“All men make mistakes; but, a good man yields

when he knows his course is wrong.

The only crime is pride.”

Sophocles

 

Early this morning, when I watched the nightmarish scenes of mob violence by Trump supporters at Washington DC Capitol – the heart of American Democracy – my own heart stopped! Like most of my fellow-humans, I, too, couldn’t believe my eyes. But, having seen, and understood well, what kind of mind the sitting President of America possessed, today’s mayhem, coup, insurrection, madness - whatever you want to call it – did not come as a surprise to me. Yes, only he could have prevented it, just as only he had incited it. He is fully responsible for today’s brutal attack on one of the finest (Not perfect, agreed) democracies in the world – which, Ronald Reagan, once, described as ‘The Shining City on a Hill’.

Donald Trump is a fallen man… a loser!





As Sen. Mitt Romney, a seasoned  fellow-Republican, mentioned in his speech to the Congress, after it  was reconvened following the mayhem; “We have gathered here because of a selfish man’s injured pride.”

Here is his speech:




I have blogged several times, before, on Donald Trump. I was, always, concerned about this beautiful country… It was in the hands of a wrong, unpredictable man. A very selfish, arrogant, toxic and divisive man. I, always, feared about the direction he was taking his country to… It’s clearly towards a Banana Republic… an autocratic state… I have, also, wondered: ‘Whatever happened to the time-tested Republican Party of Great Abraham Lincoln?... Why are its leaders not able to see through this man?'

Anyway, today’s was a watershed moment - an eye-opener or the final alarm whatever that is -  not only for America, but, also, for every democracy in this world…

People should be alert and not get carried away by the false promises by its leaders… They should be ever vigilant to safeguard all democratic institutions. So, while we may joke by saying, ‘What happens in Vegas should remain in Vegas'… We should be serious here, Sir…

‘What happened in Washington DC, today, should wake us all up!’

The world is watching America with bated breath!




'Breath' reminds me of my own breath. This morning, after watching some of the disturbing videos at American Capitol, I was commuting to my bank in an autorickshaw. Halfway, my auto stopped and two gentlemen showed up from either side of the auto. “Your mask is down, we have clicked the photo,” they said, “You have to pay the fine – Rs. 200.”

Before even I could take my next breath, one of them had cut the receipt…

A dozen people were watching the scene. “I am wearing a mask, you can see,” I managed to explain, “I had just lowered it for a moment to take a fresh breath of air.”

“But, as per the rule, and the photo we have got, you have to pay the fine,” both said firmly.

My auto driver was watching with his mask properly worn, though I could make out, that he was empathetic to me…

For a moment I felt like pulling out my shirt to show them the two-separate surgery-marks – one of them was right at the center – some 10 inches long – and say, ‘Look, I was operated following Pulmonary Embolism and a cancer-infected kidney… My lungs still need some fresh breath of air.”

But, thanks to Donald Trump, I decided not to let my injured pride – or the injury marks - to take the better of me.

“Alright, gentlemen, you do your duty, I will do mine,”  I said.  I gave the fine without a word and took the receipt.




Was I wronged? There were dozens of people freely walking around without wearing masks, let alone lowering them down for a while to take some fresh breath of air. Could I have fought my case and ‘won’… just the way Trump has been – and still is – doing… ‘I will not concede’… ‘Stop the steal’… ‘I have won by a lot’ etc., etc., etc.?

The truth was this: “I had not worn the mask as the authorities wanted me to wear. Period.”

I never said a single word to vent out my ‘injured pride’… Nor am I writing about it, here, to tell you - ‘How wronged I was’!

I, certainly, owe this wisdom to Donald J. Trump. Someone please tell this man – ‘Being peaceful is more important than being right.’ And, yes, this too: ‘At the heart of democracy breathes this tenet – It’s not about the individual good; it’s about the common good.’

God Bless America… God Bless Democracy!

 

GERALD D’CUNHA  


Pic.: 1. Internet source 2. Yours Truly

 

Videos: 1. DW News  2. WCNC

 

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