S. And the Christmas Pig (with a name)

I understand the purpose of the last remaining stricture - against political assassination - left standing, even in the chaos of war. It is a concept also reflected in the game of chess. Assassination goes beyond mere killing. It targets a leader – the head the snake, in some cases – a man (or woman), nevertheless with a recognizable name. It violates the last law of civilized behavior after which there is no telling.

S. was a little boy living in Goa. It wasn’t the place of his birth or even where he grew up. His parents moved around a lot due to the nature of his father’s job. S. used to like watching the yard from his second floor window. He watched the cow being milked and the chickens. His very favorite was the pink piglet with the curly tail. He gave it a name and it would follow him around when he went down to the yard to play.

Came Christmas, there was much activity down in the yard. S. had been struggling to stay awake the night before. Midnight mass seemed to drag on endlessly. Around daybreak he finally fell asleep. Consequently, he awoke late. It was already time for the holiday feast served on a festive table at midday. When S. came downstairs, the heavily laden table was the first thing he saw. In the center was his pig – the one with a name. It had an apple in its mouth.

S. ran back upstairs weeping. He could not eat that day.

The assassination of a leader is considered by some to be the most effective way to rid oneself of an adversary. And perhaps it is. But it flies in the face of any shred of doubt one may still harbor as to the rightness or wrongness of one’s intent. There must always be doubt. Without doubt, there is no countervailing force to mitigate madness, and it’s off to the races. Why not target Ahmadinejad, Mugabe, or Kim Jong-Il? We know where they live.

Of all the palpable threats that are facing our nation, I consider Barack Hussein Obama to be at the top of the list. Still, I would shudder if he were to be assassinated. It would mean that we have stepped over and obscured a very delicate line. It would be difficult – if not impossible – to find our way back to any semblance of normal.

Targeting Kaddafi is wrong. I know the sainted Reagan did it. He was wrong as well. Kaddafi may have been tipped off as he might have been tipped off also this time around (I should like to believe so).

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