Go fishing... for God's sake

“The first thing I learned in school was that some people are stupid; the second, that some are even stupider. Since I didn't understand at that age that it's a matter of maturity, refinement, and gentlemanly conduct to pretend not to notice this fundamental and defining difference in life, just as you pretend not to see religious, racial, sexual, class, property, or (last added to this list) cultural differences, I would excitedly raise two fingers to every teacher's question to show that I knew the correct answer“ (Pamuk, Istanbul). I wouldn't say I've become smarter with age. So...

Where and how to draw the thin line between necessary defense and a sense of security on one hand, and the arming and training in handling weapons of a senseless and aimless multitude from betting shops and a steroid-pumped and mentally questionable multitude from gyms? Where and how to draw an even thinner line between the “doctrine of an armed populace”, training in handling deadly weapons, and handing a rifle (not a stone) to a fool, and the serial/mass production of *Topalovićs, Čauševićs, Gačićs*... who are announced as the rule, not the exception (Prohić)? Where and how to draw an almost invisible line between the fear of the future hinted at by the advertising of the defense industry/production for “just in case” to the announcement of pre-military training and the final decision to buy a one-way ticket to “anywhere but here”?

And what is the Army for?! What should pre-military” training be in all the above-mentioned cases, if it is not followed by “military” training, and in a “post-conflict society in which no serious issue has been resolved, let alone the care of persons sentenced to mandatory psychiatric custody and treatment, ‘floating’ psychological or pathological bombs” (Prohić), full of legal and illegal weapons, and even fuller of returnees from various foreign battlefields, as well as those who did not manage or were unable to leave to earn a living by killing other people... in a country that has been in a state of all kinds of tension and permanent crisis for over a quarter of a century, and to which a new/old, migrant crisis is announced in the spring, which can easily turn into a catastrophe of unimaginable proportions without anyone being additionally trained and armed?

And who would then, here, ever be safe again?! And from what? Here, police officers are killed in such a way that the killer is never discovered, let alone arrested; here, children are killed, and they say everyone knows who killed them but no one dares to say it; here, defenders are tried as war criminals, and convicted war criminals are allowed to go to friendly Serbia and Croatia for a vacation from which they never return...

And, finally – though it should have been at the beginning – where and how to draw a thick line between pointing out that what is not good is not good, and the very real danger of being declared an instigator of a new genocide, a denier of the right to defense... a threat to any “sacred shelter behind which people hide, opening more and more space for human evil. Man always invents a reason outside himself to free himself from responsibility and guilt. This is an incentive for collective irresponsibility. Woe to humanity as long as it is so...“ (Selimović, Tvrđava)

Is it not enough that politics in BiH – not even a reality show – is a circus? Is it not enough that every meeting of two or three politicians is discussed as if it were some kind of historical meeting? Is it not enough that we only talk about writers, painters, scientists... after they die, while politicians are at the center of public attention, completely protected from any kind of public responsibility, no matter what nonsense they utter from their pathetic minds?

Seeking answers to (all) the above questions, I know, would be like determining what came first, the chicken or the egg?

I believe (in) God, so for a long time now I've been shrugging my shoulders, convinced that everything, including our rulers, was created by God... how and why, I have no idea. Pretty much as we deserved.

However, since we mentioned God and rulers... When Timur Lenk conquered Nasrudin Hodža's province, he summoned Nasrudin, as the wisest man in the village, and asked him:

- Nasrudin-efendija, you surely know that many famous commanders were called by people: “Beloved of God”, “Glorified by God”, “Gifted by God”, and so on... What do you think they would call me?

- They would surely call you “God forbid”!

In this context, our rulers could be called "God save us from them".

However, at the end of this reflection, something that occurred to me along the way. I don't know who would attend that pre-military training... because there are few men here... both among the masses who are silent with their ears plugged, and among those who are trying their best to lead the country. Because I haven't yet heard of anyone, not one, for whom his position, place, and salary are dearer than the country, the people, the state, who has mustered the courage and said: “That is not good, Mr. President...”, “You are not right, Mr. President...”, “Why don't you go fishing... Mr. President? It seems like great madness, which it is, but it becomes the greatest passion. And it protects a person from his follies. The world can collapse, and you will, motionless, stare at the water. The greatest wisdom in life is for a person to find their true folly. If the authorities were wise, they would order everyone: not a rifle, but a fishing rod in hand, and off to the river, go fishing! There would be no rebellions or unrest.

I tell you: go fishing... Mr. President!“