Inaction makes us all accomplices
To the Editor:
Present-day political unrest reminds me of the Spanish cellist, conductor and composer, Pav Casals, known in English by his Spanish name, Pablo Casals. Casals was born in El Vendrell, Spain, Dec. 29, 1876. He lived in France after 1936 and Puerto Rico after 1956, where he died, Oct. 22, 1973.
In addition to his "virtuosic" techniques and skilled interpretation of music, he was a deep thinker and valued sage in his time. A sampling of his profound beliefs included: “I feel the capacity to care is the thing which gives life its deepest significance.” “The first thing to do in life is to do with purpose what one purposes to do.” “We all must work to make the world worthy of its children.” He's exactly right, America has benefited greatly because a lot was once expected of her children.
Casals captured the attention of Albert Einstein (a scholar in his own right) who had this to offer (circa 1938 during Hitler’s advance across Europe): “It's certainly unnecessary to await my voice in acclaiming Pablo Casals is a very great artist, since all who are qualified to speak are unanimous on the subject. What I particularly admire in him is the firm stand he has taken, not only against the oppressions of his countrymen, but also against those opportunists who are always ready to compromise with the Devil. He perceives very clearly that the world is in greater peril from those who tolerate or encourage evil than those who actually commit it."
Martin Luther King also recognized the importance and true value of citizen involvement when, 30 years later, he proclaimed, “Our lives begin to end when we remain silent about the things that matter.”
And, corroborated as well by Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka, quoted in The Cable (Nigeria), “The man dies in all who keep silent in the face of tyranny.”
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So here we are in 2024. A recent and former president became the first U.S. president to refuse to concede an election. He’s also the first to incite an armed attack (a coup) on his own Capitol and he is the first to be convicted of a crime (actually 34 crimes) which, in most Western democracies, would be disqualifying in the eyes of voters.
In the United States however, Republicans rally around their twice-impeached convicted felon and unite with their unprincipled role model in attacking judges, prosecutors, virtually anyone attempting to hold him accountable. This speaks to the magnitude of the moral and ethical degeneration of the once proud Grand Old Party.
The core, the heart and soul of the matter is, although the former president is unquestionably guilty of crimes and corruption (some things for which he has been tried and convicted, others for which he hasn't and may never be), consider what Albert Einstein observed and so eloquently phrased: “The world is not dangerous because of those who do harm, it is dangerous because of those who watch and do nothing.”
We, as American citizens, must recognize that by choosing to remain silent on the sidelines and watch, our indifference makes us accomplices to the crimes and corruption occurring around us.
David L. Snell
Franklin
