One of my favorite short stories is The Lady or the Tiger? by Frank Stockton. It's more than just a story... it's a thought experiment on human nature, lol!! Let me summarize:
Once upon a time, a princess and some random guy fell in love. Her father, the king, didn't like this love affair, so he decided to put the guy in an arena with two doors. The guy had to pick one of the two and accept whatever was behind it. Behind one door was a vicious tiger that would maul the guy instantly. The other door had a lady behind it -- not the princess, but a different lady -- and the guy would have to marry this lady and live with her forever, should he pick that door. So either way, his relationship with the princess was about to end.
The guy was pretty scared because he had a 50% chance of dying, but the princess told him not to worry. She had inside knowledge of which door was which. So when the guy was in the arena, he looked up to the stands where the princess sat. She caught his eye and made a small gesture, letting him know which door he should open.
But that's where the story ends! lol
We are left to wonder whether the princess chose that her lover should die or marry another lady. Very tricky.
That's what the situation in Zimbabwe reminds me of right now. It's like Mugabe is the princess and the country of Zimbabwe is the guy she's in love with. Except instead of a love affair, there's been three decades of violent and oppressive rule... but for the sake of the analogy, let's call that a love affair.
Now that power-sharing agreements have been reached between the MDC and Zanu-PF, Mugabe is left in a similar position as the princess: his love affair is ending against his will. But he still has some cards left to play. Will he help Zimbabwe open door number one, where peace and prosperity and long life await? Or will he -- out of his own selfishness and pride -- lead them to open door number two, where there's nothing but violence, poverty, cholera, death, destruction, inflation, etc? Does he want Zimbabwe to survive even if he will not be in charge of everything?
Hmmmmmmmmmmmm.
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