It's not news. It's been happening throughout history, and today many people know it. OpEdNews is full of articles written by people who know it. Many of us have learned of the consequences of evil masquerading as good, of scoundrels taking refuge in patriotism, and of hypocrites taking refuge in religiosity. We know who and what they are. And we know what they've done.
"Whether evil masquerades as good in the public eye, or whether evil is cowardly and sneaky in its murderous ways, it has been and still is very powerful in its ability to slander, denigrate or even kill those who would deny it power to rule over the people. That's the main problem in the world today."
That is a quote from Joseph J. Adamson, who understands evil very well, and he also understands good. For example, he understand why in the 1960s the late great Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said: "Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that. Hate multiplies hate, violence multiplies violence, and toughness multiplies toughness, in a descending spiral of destruction."
King echoed the wisdom of all the great ones who have stood up for truth, peace, freedom, justice, equality, fairness, equity, tolerance, forgiveness, and pacifism. And he did it eloquently. That's why Adamson loves people like Dr. King, Mahatma Gandhi, and Jesus of Nazareth. They were pacifists and martyrs who chose the path of truth, peace, love, and non-violent activism to expose and rebuke the wealthy, powerful few who abuse power at the expense of the vast majority.
But Adamson knows that those who love power, wealth and domain hate the truth, and they hate those who dare to tell the truth.
Adamson knows that is why so many good, selfless, progressive political activists have been maligned, slandered, denigrated, and even killed by evil, power-hungry people who think they are right and good, and even "religious."
For 30 years now Adamson has been trying to deliver a comprehensive message that explains how and why many evil people, most of whom actually thought they were doing the right thing, have gained and abused power, and perpetrated much violence, death and destruction in their quest for more power, wealth and domain -- usually in the name of religion and/or patriotism.
Consider, for example, the worst case, Adolph Hitler, who rose to power in Germany claiming that he was a devout Christian, that his "fatherland" nation and its majority race was the greatest in the world, that it should rule the world, and that everything would be alright if certain "inferior" people, "trouble-makers" and "unbelievers" were conquered and even wiped out.
By the way, since the American Christian Right denies that Hitler claimed to be a Christian, I should tell you that in his book, Mein Kampf, Hitler wrote that he had a "sacred duty of making people stop just talking superficially of God's will, and actually fulfill God's will, and not let God's word be desecrated. For God's will gave men their form, their essence and their abilities. Anyone who destroys His work is declaring war on the Lord's creation, the divine will." In that book Hitler also wrote: "I believe that I am acting in accordance with the will of the Almighty Creator: by defending myself against the Jew, I am fighting for the work of the Lord." And, in a speech delivered in Munich three years earlier Hitler had said: "My feeling as a Christian points me to my Lord and Savior as a fighter."
Considering Hitler's words and actions as the Nazi Fuhrer, it's evident that he was not a Christian at all. He was in fact the epitome of a cruel and heartless Bigot, since the definition of a Bigot is a person who is extremely intolerant of another's religion, race, nationality, ethnic heritage, etc.
Now consider Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush, who were obviously not as bad as Hitler but are nevertheless appropriate examples and cases in point. That becomes obvious when you consider that they also rose to power claiming that they were Christian, that their nation was the greatest in the world and should be the "dominant military force for good" in the world, and that everything would be alright if it weren't for certain "misguided and inferior trouble-makers" and "unpatriotic critics" and "unbelievers," and anyone else who did not agree with them.
Of course, some may think it unfair to compare Reagan and Bush to Hitler in any way. But, under this criteria, the comparison is valid. The things that these three men had in common were that they claimed to be Christians, that they were right-wing partisan demagogues who appealed to the ego of their partisan followers, and to nationalism, prejudices, and religious bigotry. They drove the bandwagon of bible thumpers, flag wavers and sword rattlers. And, to be frank, they were all three hypocrites, even though they had convinced themselves and their followers that they were "right." (And if you deny or doubt that Reagan and Bush were hypocrites, read Reagan's Real Legacy, and Bush's Real Record, by Adamson.)
I am not even comparing them according to their deeds or misdeeds, or according to how much harm, loss and damage they caused to so many people (even though Reagan and Bush caused a lot of harm, loss and damage, as Adamson points out). I am comparing them according to what they claimed in order to gain power, the tactics they used to gain power, and the deceptive way they got their loyalists to do their bidding.
I compare them because we need to realize why throughout history many chiefs, warlords, kings, emperors, and heads of state have gained and maintained power, living by the sword, gun and bomb, for the benefit of themselves and the wealthiest few who supported them, and to the detriment of everyone and everything else!
I compare them because we need to realize why evil has so successfully masqueraded as good and pulled the wool over the eyes of the people so many times, usually in the name of religion and/or patriotism, in order to gain and maintain political and military power, wealth, and domain for the wealthiest few.
The reason is that evil is cunning. Evil infects the mind with self-importance and self-righteousness, and it is quite effective at convincing itself that it is good. That is why the worst tyrants have risen to power by claiming they were good. They actually believed it. Hitler believed it. Reagan believed it. And Bush believed it. Bush too thought and said the he was "doing God's will." So has Osama bin Laden. So have other proud and militant leaders who call themselves Jews and Muslims. It's an epidemic of evil masquerading as good, at war with other evil that masquerades as good.
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