THE VOICE MISSING IN THE LAND

Throughout most of human history, rulers always had at least two non-political adjuncts to their reign: The court jester and the court wise man. A lost practice which may yearn for revival before it's too late.

No absence of court jesters today, saying dumb things and sleeping in wrong bedrooms. But there are no longer wise men whose words carry mighty meanings in the land. And even if these seers were often executed by their rule, at least they were taken seriously

In their absence, rulers now have experts. People who know more and more about less and less. Which may be why rulers and nations today see the "big picture" only in "fragmented footnotes." No lack of details about WHAT has gone wrong this month (eg. policy mistakes, mis-spoken remarks, illegal lobbying, mis-spent funds, battlefield errors). But who is left to ponder WHY....??

The experts do seek to explain HOW (eg. it's the person's party affiliation, cultural background, economic interests, race, religion or nation). However, such expert explanations beg the question of WHY; for no one party, culture, interests, race, religion or nation has any monopoly on wrong-doing. Re-reading the wise words of the wise men in earlier ages, they almost always roar in the king's court warnings reminiscent of Shakespeare's Cassius: "The fault dear Brutus is not in our stars, but in ourselves..."

In place of the ancient wise men, today we have wise professors in philosophy classrooms and wise authors in piercing literary narratives. Thoughtful students and reflective readers resonate with the wise WHY's that seem to lurk behind our human actions and failings. Somehow, though, these wise realizations have little or no voice in great decision-making.

Well, we are told, it's so obvious. Too academic, too impractical, too heady for a hard-elbowed world....!

Maybe so, maybe no. And yet, a world of clashing elbows will forever remain competing for victories over rivals who -- upon closer and wiser consideration -- are exactly like us. The Human Condition which has forever bound the peoples of the world like conjoined (Siamese) twins. Only we refuse the wisdom of the wise who forever remind us: No one is an island on which they can presume it's "the other" who is wrong.