REFLECTIONS ON CHARACTER AND LEADERSHIP

190 REFLECTIONS ON CHARACTER AND LEADERSHIP

depressed and give in to feelings of helplessness and hopelessness. People

who take this route engage in non - stop self - recrimination. Despairing

of a life free from violence and cruelty, they become morose, tearful,

joyless, fatalistic, and hopeless about the future. Devoid of their former

vigor and focus, and seeing themselves as worthless and inconsequential,

they are unable to initiate action. They expect the worst, which is

usually what they get. Eventually, they either become resigned to the

situation, withdrawn and apathetic, or they welcome violent acts against

them by the regime as a way of stopping the work of worrying.

Fighting for Freedom

And yet, as we so often hear in the world of sport, the best defense is a

good offense. In a society of sheep served by a government of wolves,

there are generally a few citizens who are unwilling to baa with

the others and are prepared to stand up to the demagoguery of the

despot.

People who assume the ‘ fi ght ’ position have realized that they have

been asked to make a Faustian bargain — mater ia l advantages in exchange

for dishonesty, hopelessness, cruelty, and destruction. Some freedom

fi ghters are swayed initially by the lure of a utopian ideology but stand

up for freedom once they see the excesses of their leadership; others

recognize the new order for what it is from the outset. However they

reach their determination, they stick with it: at great risk to self and

family, they defend their convictions. Many heroic examples — most of

whom died for their efforts — can be found in Nazi Germany, Stalinist

Russia, and Maoist China. Such people resist exploitation, defend the

right to liberty for all, and believe that all people should be able to follow

their own dreams. People with this mindset are catalysts for the creation

of new, more democratic societies out of the rubble of tyranny. By

defending principles of personal responsibility and individual liberty,

they bring human dignity to all.

Shaka’s legacy

Despots can be builders, creators of great empires. However, the seeds

of self - destruction lie dormant in the beliefs and practices on which their

empires are founded. Shaka both built up and tore down the Zulu

people. He created a powerful nation, but he did so by legitimizing

violence, weaving it throughout the entire social structure. Shaka ’ s ina-