Firm. Wise?

A rough day. Necessarily so? A question not answered quickly. But the newly gained insight would answer sooner than ever before.

A caged animal, fiercely attacking the next to open the door. The wise and therefore compassionate one to open it this time knows why the captive lashes out. The not-so-wise to open it before did so with out regard for the oppressed occupant. Stronger cages serve the privileged but at a price felt over time. With each insecurity driven 'advance' in the tool of oppression, the captor's internal parasite of self-destruction grows. Some call it shame.

Again, the wise one new that while the infected became more and more subservient, they were no less deserving of compassion though the process was certainly more difficult. In so many ways, the caged animal would respond with less effort. The master of that animal ... anything but. Dominion turned on its ugly head to become the dehumanizer of the so-called 'masters'.

The fog of war. Chaos obscuring a potentially beautiful order. When it lifts all will make sense. Before, little will. But is this not true of oppression also? Just an asymmetric form of that violence? We practice it frequently, even in our daily lives. Adopting habits without realizing their consequence. Lip service to compassion is to miss its deep, secular, long-term value. So when the humble leader speaks such wisdom it is easier to hear when one is not caged. Even by the illusion of security associated with the captor's cages.