Blasted local economy and US suppression of a woman’s right

The evil that men do lives after them,

I quote only half of the sentiment Marc Antony insightfully made in his superb eulogy to the stabbed Caesar, as penned by William Shakespeare in his tragic Julius Caesar. The quote is apt for my premise this Sunday morning substantiated by my observations and borrowing from what others wrote.

When the May 9 attack on peaceful protestors at Gotagogama occurred, with the drunken slobs emerging from Temple Trees after being fed with food, venom and a vengeful ‘go forth you dogs of war and destroy!’ I immediately recalled Donald Trump and his 70 minute speech on the National Mall in which he slammed the election as unjust and shouted: “You don’t concede when there is theft involved. Our country has had enough. We will not take it anymore. You will have an illegal president and we cannot allow it. If you don’t fight like hell you’re not going to have a country.” A dog maddened with envy and foolish pride had the mob of Republicans doing the unthinkable – gate crashing violently the Capitol Building.

Same incitement to mayhem and murder over here. Both horrendous attacks on the Capitol in Washington DC and in Colombo Galle Road and Galle Face were planned and carried out by ex- Prezs of the two countries and further in our case, by the just resigned Prime Minister. Trump stood alone on that podium as he sounded his battle cry; Mahinda Rajapaksa had his prime bootlicker Johnston, a couple of others and son Namal beside him at the infamous lunch at Temple Trees.

The House of Reps over there is investigating the matter with a ‘January 6 Committee’ appointed and all connected including Ivana Trump and ex Mayor of NY Giuliani being questioned. Though Trump refused to appear and answered questions in his domain, he will in all probability be called to testify. Over here, though the turmoil spread all over the island within that evening and night, unlike in the US where only the Capitol was invaded and vandalized, the questioning has been halfhearted. When will the ex PM and his eldest son be summoned for questioning? They were in guarded hiding in the Naval camp in Trinco and emerged when Ranil W accepted the premiership. Thus the justifiable finger pointing that Ranil is savior of the Rs.

And now the (indirect) consequences

The landmark decision in the Roe vs Wade case (1973) in the US Supreme Court was that the Constitution of the US protects a pregnant woman’s liberty to choose to have an abortion. “The decision struck down many federal and state abortion laws fueled an ongoing abortion debate in the US about whether, or to what extent, abortion should be legal, who should decide the legality of an abortion, and what the role of moral and religious views in the political sphere should be. It also shaped debate concerning which methods the Supreme Court should use in constitutional adjudication.”

The case was brought by Norma McCorvey – known by her legal pseudonym, ‘Jane Roe’- who in 1969, pregnant with her third child wanted an abortion but lived in Texas, where abortion was illegal except when necessary to save the mother’s life. Her attorneys, Sarah Weddington and Linda Coffee, filed a lawsuit on her behalf in the US Federal court against local district attorney Henry Wade, alleging that Texas’ abortion laws were unconstitutional. The SC passed a 7-2 decision – one of the most controversial in US – in favour of Roe; upheld until now.

On Friday June 24, The US Supreme Court decided by six votes to three to overturn the 50 year old Roe vs Wade judgment and ruled that decision on all questions of legality and access to abortion will now go to America’s individual States, some of whom immediately put abortion bans into place. It also overturned the Planned Parenthood vs Casey, a 1992 case that upheld Roe vs Wade.

Criticism of this latest ruling was loud and clear. Joe Biden: “It’s a sad day for the country. This decision must not be taken as the final word.” He also said, “it was three justices named by President Donald Trump who were the core of today’s decision and upended the scales of justice to eliminate a fundamental right for women in this country.” He warned voters to make it a defining issue in the November elections.

The UN Human Rights Commissioner has termed the ruling that overturned the constitutional right to abortion: “a huge blow to women’s human rights and gender equality.” UN agencies warned that restricting access to abortion does not prevent people from seeking it but simply makes it ‘more deadly’.

The point I want to make here is not pay full attention to the abortion laws and SC rulings in the US. It is to show that though Donald Trump was defeated by the Democratic Party’s Joe Biden, he is not a spent force. Not by a long chalk. Even making stronger gun laws after the gunning down by a 19-year old of children and teachers in a school in Texas. This incident was what propelled Biden and the Democrats to seek stronger gun control measures. Failed; again showing evidence of Trump’s evil still holding strong. “The US Supreme Court has struck down a New York law restricting gun-carrying rights, in its most important judgment on guns in over a decade. It expands gun rights amid a fierce national debate over the issue. The decision, which jeopardizes similar regulations in states like California and New Jersey, is expected to allow more people to carry guns legally.”

“Justice Clarence Thomas, writing on behalf of the six conservative judges who make up the court’s majority, ruled that Americans have a right to carry ‘commonly used’ firearms in public for personal defense,”

Over here in Paradise destroyed

First a woman’s right to abort a foetus she carries. Abortion is still illegal I believe, unless it is to save the mother’s life. Even a raped woman has to carry the unwanted and probably hated child impregnated in her by her attacker. And so quoting an article I read titled ‘Sri Lanka’s backstreet abortions’ by Meghan D Ladly on August 5, 2020: “Hundreds of women take daily risks with illegal terminations of pregnancies. Sri Lanka’s abortion laws are among the world’s most restrictive.”

My concern is on influence of just-past leaders proven to have been unjust, corrupt, evil in short. We are at present suffering from these as never before. What are the evils that took root in society in general consequent to the pervasive influence of these evil leaders? I list them as I see apt with minimum explanation.

Sycophancy and boot licking and saying aye to anything the leader decrees (20 A). This aye parroting is not only due to abject obedience but for self preservation too. We had such earlier too. Remember the politician under Prez R Premadasa who said he savours sereppu soup of his boss’ footwear? Disgusting, to say the least!

Money elevated to the be-all of life. Even half sufficient could not be earned, so resort to corruption at all levels; steal money sent for tsunami relief, Covid prevention, 10% s and all that.

Coin an evil term with sinister connotation of majority and thus superiority. I mean here the phrase Sinhala Buddhist. Ven Uda Eriyagama Dhammajeeva Maha Thero said: “If you call yourself a Sinhala Buddhist, you are not a Buddhist.” Monks were politicized and if they strayed, were gifted luxury vehicles, honours or even university chancellorships!

Live in luxury while the majority struggle on. Ride in style in Jags and most expensive vehicles; race in Lamborghinis; jog along laid out tracks on ancient wewa bunds; and have girls galore. Get built underground luxury apartments and also aggrandize old homesteads and tombstones. No need to mention white elephants built not for use but vanity and to emblazon a name on.

With a shiver I add: kill those who are obstacles whether to political progress or individual pride.

A book could be written on this proven truth that the evil that men do lives on, since mankind is imitative and also most have the desire to surpass the Jones’ or Pereras. But the good men do is often interred with them. Who remembers with gratitude the Father of our Nation or his son?