from Verse One Hundred Fifty-TwoIgnorant rulers are not like this: they take from the people without assessing their strength, seek from their subjects without measuring their stores. Men and women cannot attend to their plowing and weaving, because they to provide for the demands of the rulers; their strength overexerted and their wealth exhausted, every morning they are unsure of living through the day. The rulers and their subjects hate each other.~ Wen-tzu: Understanding the Mysteries ~
If you look at what's going on in the US today, there is a lot of exasperation and anger. This is one of the reasons for the rise of the Tea Party movement. It also is one of the motivations for many other types of groups (e.g., leftists, anarchists, militia movement, etc.).People have lost their faith in good government. It doesn't seem to matter who is sitting in the Oval Office/Governor's Mansion or which party controls the Congress or legislature. Poll after poll indicates that the majority of citizens simply do not believe the government is looking out for their best interests.
If we take Lao Tzu's words to heart, it's easy to see WHY people feel this way -- our leaders and their constituents hate each other. This does not bode well for the future. Where strong enmity exists, violence and repression often follow!
This post is part of a series. For an introduction, go here.
This "people vs. bad emperor" theme is so common in a lot of the Chinese films I like to watch. They may be set in ancient dynasties, but they are so au courant. I used to think they were just addressing contemporary Chinese political frustrations, but they are relevant to all of us. It is usually an enlightened leader who prevents revolt...or cleans up after a nasty one.
ReplyDeleteSo true!
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