Last Thursday evening my husband and I went on a date night. The plan was dinner and a movie. Given my husband’s American background he wanted
to see “Lincoln”, so off we went.
I enjoyed the movie but two uncomfortable thoughts burrowed
into my brain and continue to gnaw rat-like away at it.
The first is this…
Does the battle against an evil justify blurring the lines
between what’s right and what’s wrong?
Lincoln’s goal to abolish slavery in the Southern United
States is the main plot line in this historical movie account. A worthy goal, though not popular in his time
in history.
We all know Lincoln achieved this goal, but the way the
movie depicts the journey to get there leaves me wondering if it’s OK to blur
the lines between black and white, or right and wrong, if the stakes are high
enough.
In the movie Lincoln resorts to bribery, coercion, buying
votes, and downright bullying to ensure the bill to end slavery is passed.
I sat with a sense of unease as I watched the story
unfold. Is it OK to use whatever means
necessary to get the desired outcome?
What about the controversial torture scenes depicted in the
movie “Zero Dark Thirty”? Can we
conveniently turn off moral beliefs when the “greater good” is at stake?
You’re probably sitting there thinking, “They’re MOVIES you
idiot…fiction…creative writing…get over it.” Fair point.
But let’s be realistic.
We all know black and white turn to shades of grey in politics, in
business, and in other venues. And we
turn a blind eye, making an excuse, “Well that’s just business.” Or, “It’s
politics, what can you expect?”
Whether it’s fact or fiction it still begs the disconcerting
question…is it OK to blur the lines between “right” and “wrong” or “good” and “bad”
when trying to rid the world of a greater “bad”?
The second thought is this…
The thirteenth amendment to the U.S. constitution outlawing
slavery was signed in 1865. Today we’re
close to being 150 years in the future.
At first glance you think, “How far we’ve come”. Perhaps a more accurate statement is, “How
far we have to go.”
Hate crimes and prejudices are still all too common, not only
in our own back yards of Canada and the United States, but around the world.
Granted, slavery no longer exists openly on the North
American continent. But we’re still
slaves to our own biases that prevent us from seeing and treating people from
other races and religions as equals.
At first glance it’s easy to throw out pat answers to these
thoughts, freeing our minds to move on to other seemingly more important questions.
If we do gloss over this type of thought process I think we
cheat ourselves out of an opportunity to open our minds to consider different
opinions and ideas. In doing so we miss
out on an opportunity for personal growth.
What do you think? Do
we need to struggle with questions like these in order to learn and grow? Is it OK to blur the lines of black and white
when it serves a higher purpose? Do we
still struggle with human equality issues around the world today?
Share your thoughts by clicking on “comments” below.
