It’s astounding how many of us act as we know even issues about which we don’t have the slightest hint. We claim to know almost everything as if we can push the Einsteins of the world into the back benches; “Go and do your homework before you even think of sitting in the front rows of knowledge like we do!” And believe me many times than not we succeed in attracting quite significant following. One thing is that we talk of things we don’t know with such finality we don’t leave others room to navigate across the speculation realm.
“Sorry; about the issue you just said I’m afraid I didn’t get your point. Would you kindly explain it to me?” We’re not taking that lightly. Some goon is trying to put our reputation as a know-all on the chopping block. “Who the hell allowed this goon into the room!” That of course is implied in gestures and facial expressions! We could with all the confidence in the world say that in this age of information very unluckily most of us haven’t yet left the train station of knowledge and rain after zooms past.
Take politics. That’s one world where fence jumping seems to be the norm rather than the exception. Say, just the other day talking over cups of coffee this guy was saying that had this world had a couple of hundred more people like Lenin it would have been in a far better place than the mess it is presently. The way he says it could be like what can be called a ‘from the depths of the heart’ optimism. (And we thought good old Lenin was gone for good!) You don’t need to ask him what he meant by that. “Look it is surprising you raise the name Lenin at a time when practically no one knows who the hell he was!”
“That’s what I’m saying! Had people some idea of what that guy fought for they would have put his statue in all the capitals of the world. (That must his idea of an implied scorn directed at us. You know we had his statue somewhere downtown and we pulled it down whom the political dynamics changed. Want to know the possible irony? Well the people in charge were the ones for whom Lenin, along with the two bearded guys, the savior of the oppressed of the world.
That, too, must have been fence-jumping which was all about ingratitude! Ha! At least give him credit for that red book of quotations which made everyone smart. Some must have thought “If he didn’t say it, it hadn’t been said!” (Someone should come up with some ‘Quotations for Dummies!’ book, which excludes no one even the Kan Ye West fellow.) “You know once Lenin said…”
Anyway the guy who practically worshipped Lenin goes into such a flip flop he turns his idol into enemy number one! Does that sound familiar? The very person you thought was a very true friend, that sort of friend who goes with you all the way to the bitter end. Then something happens; something you probably don’t know. And that is when the world turns on its head. The guy who spoke of you with such enthusiasm high esteem, the person who was close to making a demi-God out of you is suddenly out on some vicious character assassination campaign.
It takes time for the news of the outrage to reach you. Most of the time that’s the case, wouldn’t you say? You, who is, to borrow an entertainment industry jargon, the Central Character of the whole story would be among the last to get wind of what was going on. How easily and effortlessly he jumped the best friendship fence and joined ‘the other side’ is a mind wrecking and even frustrating riddle for you.
When we feel and act we know things we actually DON’T know, you ask yourself in which literary genre to put the story; tragedy or comedy! Recently, I was watching some guy out on the streets interviewing random pedestrians on issues which seemingly have to do with Africa. Most of those interviewed look like guys on either side of their thirties with some probably past the four decades mark and others closer to their teens. Look trying to evaluate people by their appearances would be not far from being primitive as primitive goes. But most of them, and I’m not talking about how they are dressed or things like that, look like they have some schooling. So you’d expect for them to respond quite easily to questions which are neither bright nor difficult. But alas! This was one of the times when you didn’t know how to react.
I mean the way they try to display they are actually on this side of the fence where knowledge or something close to knowledge rules, how wonderful it would have been if people had the courage to “You’re only embarrassing yourself and no one is impressed. Look, how about going back over the fence to where you came from and arm yourself with sufficient knowledge so that you don’t have to jump any fence to join this side. The doors would be wide open.” But no; none of us want to be blacklisted by these people by trying to tell them the last thing they want to hear.
I know a guy who could say could be a case study of fence-jumping the highest level. You can’t help wondering, and even giving him a little dose of admiration under your breath, about the way he can turn things to his liking. And he has mastered doing all the wrong things without blinking a single eyelid all the time jumping fences at will. Especially he joins and then leaves a certain group, one of those spiritually inclined groups, with such frequency you wonder how they take him in repeatedly the guy having kicked dust into their faces over and again. When he goes back it means there are some new funds for the taking.
The juice of the story here is that he manages his fence-jumping with such command many fall for his ruse and even become his cheerleaders. He knows when the group have some contract or freelance job to offer in his field, a field in which his capabilities are up for serious questions. Somewhat he ‘wins’ the contract of the freelance job.
Here is where he plays real smart. He apportions the job among a few guys he knows; guys with far better capabilities. Finally, he pays he was promised and goes away with more than the lions share without penning a single word. Then you know what happens? He leaves! That’s what he does, the guy leaves after collecting his pay just like that. You find him in places where members of the group are seldom, if ever, found. “Hey, what’s going on! I thought you guys don’t come to such places.”
“So what’s the big deal?”
“I’m surprised to find you here. Have they rewritten their books?”
“I don’t know and I don’t care.”
“Meaning…”
“I have left them.”
“Oooh…” And that is an “Oooh…” which comes after every few months!
There was some debate among those who know how the people over at the place gave him so much freedom to go in and out when his real intentions evaded no one. Well, it was a debate which really didn’t go off. Why? I’ll tell you why. It’s about network dummy! In case no one told you yet, the right network in the right places could do ‘miracles’ and the world could be yours. Is his case among the exceptional? I’m not sure. It might be.
Ephrem Endale Contributer
The Ethiopian Herald March 17/2024