Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Burning

Not everyone in the world has the freedom we have in the United States. They can't say what is on their mind, or do what they please (within specific restrictions). These two people couldn't stand it anymore, and killed themselves to try to stop it. What some people will do to be free. It makes you be grateful for what we have in our Country, freedom.

Both Mohamed Bouazizi, and “The Burning Monk” Thich Quang Duc, lit themselves on fire to prove a point. Bouazizi wanted to at least make enough money as a fruit vendor to send some family members to college. When a lady took his scale, this was the last straw for him. He went to the government building and burned himself, to show he was fed up with everything, and he had been pushed over the edge. This “spark”, combined with Facebook spreading the word around the country and to neighboring countries, started a revolution that took the dictator out of power.

“The Burning Monk”  part of the, South Vietnamese Buddhists made requests to the Diem regime to Lift its ban on flying the traditional Buddhist flag, Stop detaining Buddhists, and giving other rights back to the Buddhists. When no one listened to their requests Thich Quang Duc took to desperate measures. He went to a busy intersection, and sat there silently, burning to death. The main difference with Bouazizi and “The Burning Monk” is Thich Quang Duc didn’t start a revolution like Mohammed Bouazizi, but received little attention. Two people sacrificed themselves for what they believed in, and one created an uprising, the other went somewhat unnoticed.

Not everyone in the world has the freedom we have in the United States. They can't say what is on their mind, or do what they please (within specific restrictions). These two people couldn't stand it anymore, and killed themselves to try to stop it. What some people will do to be free. It makes you be grateful for what we have in our Country, freedom.



David Halberstam, of the New York Times wrote “I was to see that sight again, but once was enough. Flames were coming from a human being; his body was slowly withering and shriveling up, his head blackening and charring. In the air was the smell of burning human flesh; human beings burn surprisingly quickly. Behind me I could hear the sobbing of the Vietnamese who were now gathering. I was too shocked to cry, too confused to take notes or ask questions, too bewildered to even think…. As he burned he never moved a muscle, never uttered a sound, his outward composure in sharp contrast to the wailing people around him.”

No comments:

Post a Comment