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Many years ago, the Cherokee People were ruled
by a clan of hereditary priests called the Anikutani. Once these priests
were impeccable and beyond reproach, but over the years they became
greedy, arrogant and mean.
Having the power to control the People, they abused it and took what
they wanted. They were never hungry and demanded the best of the venison
and corn as tribute. The corrupt Priests invoked so much fear in the
People that they were afraid to rise up against them.
One day one of the Priests took a warrior's beautiful young wife by
force. When the warrior returned home and found out what had happened,
he became so angry that he was able to rally the other warriors to rise
up and kill the evil priests. This put an end to the fear and misery
these men had brought upon the tribe.
That is the way of every nation though. Once the ruling class becomes
corrupt, society itself begins to crumble. In the past, it sometimes
took thousands of years for a civilization to rise and fall. Now, thanks
to our advanced technology, we have come further faster than any other
country in the world.
But the vastness of our wealth and the endless possibilities for
pleasure have caused a breakdown in our society as a whole, and in our
leaders most conspicuously.
Where today is honor? Where is morality? Where is hope?
And while there are some good people serving in government or running
for office, the taste of ash is in my mouth. What happens to them when
they jump into the putrid cauldron of politics? Will they sink to the
bottom or will they be able swim to that distant shore? Even if they
maintain their own standards, can it be enough to offset those who
wallow in the trough of power and greed?
But there is cause for Hope. We are looking towards the dawn of a New
World. All things will be good again.
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Be careful of words and political rhetoric. Can you guess who made the
following statement?
"The national government will maintain and defend the foundations on
which the power of our nation rests. It will offer strong protection to
Christianity as the very basis of our collective morality. Today
Christians stand at the head of our country. We want to fill our culture
again with the Christian spirit. We want to burn out all the recent
immoral developments in literature, in the theater, and in the press -
in short, we want to burn out the poison of immorality which has entered
into our whole life and culture as a result of liberal excess during
recent years."
v
v
v
v
v
v
v - Adolph Hitler
Source: The Speeches of Adolf Hitler, vol. 1 (London, 1942), 871-72.
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