IT is a complete myth that ostriches bury their heads in the sand. They are only turning their eggs several times a day, which are in sand-nests. It is only humans that bury their heads when faced with unpleasant truths.
Certainly, no one likes bad news. It is a real bummer to wake up in the morning and read in the newspapers about death and disaster. However, the genuine disaster comes with people who choose to ignore what is going on around them. On Thursday I wrote about people who prefer to “remain ignorant.” But the greatest danger to society comes from those who are not ignorant but who are complacent and bury their heads in the sand.
The mythical ostrich that these people emulate knows there is danger and prefers to ignore it. Many Filipino ancestors did not behave that way, otherwise, Spanish would be the official language of the Philippines, or an American civil governor would be living in Malacañan Palace.
The rise of Japanese military nationalism—that led to the invasion of and atrocities in the Philippines —is ignored because Japan might help the country in its battle with China. The fact that the United States may move to more isolationism under the potential presidency of Donald Trump ignores the catastrophe of US “globalization” in the Middle East.
There used to be a time that people took control of their lives and faced problems head on. Every nation is facing this same problem. No one welcomes a war against that, which is wrong, but often it is inevitable. It seems like not too long ago that drug pushers were often dealt with by ordinary citizens. I can remember when unsavory characters in the barangay were “invited” by local barangay tanod and escorted out of town. Corrupt barangay officials found that angry citizens were stronger than elections and a mayor’s protection.
Sure, the latest “war on drugs” is horrifying. Equally horrifying is a Chinese national almost openly attempting to smuggle 5 kilograms of shabu into the Philippines, appearing to have expected a pre-payment to someone to allow the drugs to come in. Do we bury our heads about the latter to avoid the former?
Around the globe for the last many decades, people gave power to governments to protect them and to provide for them. As France’s opposition leader Marie Le Pen said in the aftermath of the latest terrorist attack, “This is the result of a state failing in its first priority, which is the protection of our citizens.”
The people buried their heads about their national security, about personal liberties and about the economies that provide their quality of living for too long. No longer. Here is a fact about ostriches that is not a myth. While just a “big bird,” a threatened ostrich is so strong that a single blow from its powerful, long legs can kill a lion or cheetah with a single forward kick.
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