Know Better Now

"Truth is, when the request to sell my soul (so-to-speak) became blatantly explicit, I went into shock. The comical negotiation at the Hoyt Arboretum shelter notwithstanding.

Pawn

"It was easy to be lulled into complacency. After all, I became powerful and secure at a young  age all the while oblivious to the high cost of selecting whose propaganda to follow.

"I was unaware of the political struggle engulfing the large investor. On more than one occasion it was suggested I leverage the conflict and succumb to a pragmatic corruption.

But I know this only in retrospect. Clueless is a word that comes to mind in this regard. Almost three decades later, it is starting to make some sense. The value merely delayed, not lost."

The successful predators are smart enough to keep alive the mock battle stoked to divert the attention of those whose pocket is being picked. But they depend on obscurity more than most. And invest deeply in the cloak. By now we know, it is more common than popularly believed.

© 2012 Buzz Hill