Good morning everyone! Here is a message from George Barnard, still applicable today.
Carole, Song At Sunrise
Samuel of Panoptia.
Subject: “The Frailty of Democracy.”
Received by George Barnard.
Samuel: “Good evening my dear students. This is Samuel of Panoptia. My brother, Aaron, is by my side, and we have prepared for you a simple lesson on democratic government.
“Well may you agree with us that the best method of government is some form of democracy. However, the difficulty with democracy is that after a period of time things tend to go awry. As we spoke earlier today, I will again repeat how this comes about. As a community grows, people concern themselves with rules for this community, and naturally, as it grows and grows, rules and rights that are fair to all will be noted. Some will object to some of the rules of the community and a democratic system of voting does then come about.
As the clan, the tribe, the nation grows even bigger, a structure, a hierarchy will establish itself to ensure that everyone knows the rules, and that everyone sticks by the rules. Some will have to, as is often spelled out, become more equal then others. Indeed! Someone will need to be at the head of the community, perhaps, more than a few will need to be at the head of the community. Very often these positions will pass on from one member of the ruling class to a descendant, to an offspring of this ruler class, and there, all of a sudden, you will have something quite less of a democracy.
“And, as ‘the heavens’ have witnessed again and again, there will be those who are power hungry from a young age. They will have little care for others and only care for wealth and control. These are the psychopaths, you would call them, who must control the moneys or the currencies, the goods and many favors, for friends and themselves. These powerful individuals represent the frailty of democracy! As one generation takes over from the old, they will care less and less for the common pawns – those who were always led or used.
“Soon all will find that certain members of the community will have advantages over others because of their position. We find this to be much the case among the financiers of various projects. Sooner or later you will have an absolute ruler, perhaps an absolute tyrant, in charge of the community, and that is then the end of your democracy. Democracies often regress into dictatorships. And so, certain rules must go into place in order for this not to happen. Firstly, not a single individual must be in charge of an ever growing community.
There needs to be a number of them. They need to be balanced. They must not be professional politicians. They must be those that come from the law, or from the medical professions, and that have shown in their lives to be caring of others, that have shown in their lives that they have not filled their pockets with whatever currency is in use. These are the ones that will ensure that a democracy stays a democracy. It is simple for me, and this is why I am your spokesman at this time, for this is the way of Panoptia.
“All have to show that they are from a profession where they care for others, where personal wealth is only of moderate importance, where they are proven to be bright, decisive, working in the interest of others, where they prove to have their minds about them even at an older age. And then again, they have to learn what the community and its rulings are all about, and they stay in that government position for only a few years. This is the reason why Panoptia remains so very successful – it has for ages – millenia.
“I leave you now for you to give this your consideration, and I would like to see you transcribe the words and make them available to others. This is Samuel, signing off for both Aaron and myself. Goodnight.”
