HiDDen In PlaIN sIGHt

Remember when you used to be a little kid? 

You used to be scared of the things that go bump in the night, the beasts that growl, snarl, and threaten, and lurked in the shadows. You thought you saw something in the corner. You thought you heard a sound in the closet. You thought you felt something under the bed. You'd rather not walk down the dark hall to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night. Bad dreams. Thunder and lightning. Howling winds. Creeping, crawling things. The stuff childhood nightmares are made of.

This caused many a sleepless night for many of us. 

Now you're all grown up. Perhaps with kids of your own that you nightly encourage to not be afraid of such things. We tell them that these things are not real. We tell them that we should ignore the monsters and they can't harm us. Your final instructions? 

Now close your eyes and go back to sleep.

When we open our eyes the next morning, what exactly do we see?

The world outside of our front door is scary too. Remaining asleep is, of course, optional. We don't have to look. We can turn our heads and avert our eyes. We can see what we want to see. Just like when we were little kids. We can hide in the comforting land of "make believe". Bad cannot harm or affect us and everything is good. Or, conversely, we can say, everything is bad and threatens to harm and destroy us and nothing is good. A tale of two contrasting extremes with seemingly nothing logical in between.

I'm unashamedly not a fan of the horror movie genre and I'm also not afraid of the things that plagued us back then. To me, those monsters on the movie screen pale in comparison to the ones much closer to home.

What's scary now are the people that everyone says can do no wrong. They are above reproach no matter the circumstance. They would never dare be challenged to change. The vast majorities loves them blindly and cannot see even the most obvious blemish. They would never believe a bad word spoken against these "pillars of the community". They will always have the benefit of the doubt. They're the kindest, sweetest, most hospitable persons you know and they would never hurt a fly. They are untouchable. They are in control. And they're everywhere. 

But some of you have been so privileged to see what lies beneath. You have been given a rare opportunity to look behind the curtain. You have seen them without their garb, without the mask that they wear publicly. You have seen them in their true form. But so many remain under the initial impression that "they" don't exist. They are willfully or ignorantly unaware of these ugly, mean-spirited, self-serving monsters. They smile in your face and speak atrocities behind your back. They shake your hand but they think you're beneath them and devalue your life. They say "bless you" but don't wish you well. They say they love God but they hate you or worse, they loath themselves so they lack the capacity to love you. They attempt to snuff out the light of innocent children. They defame and tarnish anything meant to be sacred and pure. They steal what is not theirs by right. They use division to maintain their power and leverage. They profit from the destruction of others. If they can't understand or control it, it must be destroyed. All they give to you comes with a price to be paid later. They devour and never get enough to satisfy their insatiable hunger. They have built their own empires and wield with iron hands behind the guise of a friendly smile. They have grown stronger with each day. 

They are the most dangerous "monster" the world has ever seen. They have power and influence in the community, in public offices, in schools, in the church, and in organization. They lack your moral disposition. They lack the human compassion necessary to co-exist. They are depraved. They are delusional that they are always right and everyone else is wrong. They make decisions that affect you but do not benefit you. They believe the world is better without you in it. They're dangerous not because they're unstoppable with some super power or because they have truth or some wisdom on their side. They're dangerous because of their ability to hide in plain sight. Not in the shadows where the monsters used to dwell but outside in your world, on your television, on your favorite radio station, in your workplace, within your organization, and in your neighborhood. Not concealed in the shadows as the "monsters" you once knew but now are standing in the light. 

But few want to see them now just like we didn't want to see them back then. It's easier to just pretend they are not there. No horns, claws, or sharp teeth but monsters nonetheless. 

We will forever be unable to conquer what we refuse to confront.