Unforgettable Egypt

Source : Google photo of the temple of Hatshepsut in Luxor

Synopsis : Countries such as Egypt that have offered their very rich heritage to the world to see and admire are few and are under constant pressure to safeguard and preserve what they have found so far. They are still finding new sites and hidden treasures all over Egypt that need to be brought out for safe keeping in museums. Egyptians are understandably very proud of their ancient heritage that is so unique.

The Egyptians are understandably very proud of their ancient civilization that has left its mark in the world history. No country can rival what the ancient Egyptians left as their legacy that is unique and has no equal anywhere. You will see the temples or their ruins, the vast underground crypts of their rulers in the Valley of the Kings and Queens in Luxor, the vast complex of the Karnak temple and the Luxor temples. gigantic statues of Ramses and his wife Nefetari in Aswan, the incredible pyramids in Giza, the step pyramid of Djoser, the temple of Hatshepsut in Luxor and others too numerous to mention.

What you will see in Egypt is perhaps a glimpse of their vast antiquities spread all over the country along the Nile because to see everything will require more than a few days or weeks. The Giza plateau where the Pyramids stand is criss crossed by shafts that go vertically down to underground chambers in all directions filled with statues, mortuaries and numerous objects of historic importance but most of them are closed to the public.

When you visit the Valley of the Kings and Queens in Luxor where most of the royalty of Egypt is buried in deep underground crypts, you will be able to visit just a few of them out of 65 or more crypts because some of them are closed to public and others will require you to buy more tickets to visit them. The Valley gets extremely hot during the summer months so you will get easily tired and dehydrated unless you are prepared for it.

There is a replica of the valley in acrylic in 3D in the main entrance hall where you will get your tickets that most accurately displays the entire valley and the deep descending tunnels that lead you to the site of the burial chamber or chambers. Some new ones are being discovered using the ground penetrating radar and other sophisticated technology but it may be years before the public is allowed to see them..

They have not yet discovered the crypt of Nefertiti who was the step mother of King Tutan Khamun but some have found the tell tale signs of a hidden door in the crypt of the king that may lead to her tomb. Most of the mummies of the Royalty have been moved to the National museum in Cairo along with the treasures found in some of the crypts so you will only see the empty sarcophagi in most of the sites. Only the mummy of Tutan Khamun is still visible in his crypt covered with a white sheet outside his sarcophagus. You will need to buy a separate ticket to visit the crypt of Tutan Khamun although it is not as spectacular as the others.

It would have been nice to have just one ticket to visit all the sites in the Valley of the Kings and pay the price than to have numerous separate tickets so the visitors should have the option but that is not the case. They try to get as much money from you as possible but a piped in history through head phones in each site could be easily offered to those who will pay the price and listen in their own language.

The guards tell you not to talk in the tunnels and crypts and not to take flash photos that can damage the bright paintings on the wall so that is quite understandable. Also video making is prohibited probably for commercial reasons but I have found several videos in the U tube that are very well done to show you the beauty of the ancient art on the walls while you enter and descend the ramp to reach the bottom that is deep underground. Again it would have been better to have a narration to describe what you see and the meaning of the Hieroglyphs that only a few experts can decipher. So you are limited to the description in Foddor’s guide book that you can buy somewhere.

The sarcophagi in most sites and the chambers containing the treasures have long been looted by the thieves over the centuries who have damaged and even broken the stone sarcophagi in order to find the loot so that is quite disappointing . Only the crypt of Tutan Khamun was found intact by Howard Carter where he found the extraordinary treasure trove that the whole world has seen and is under the safe keeping of the Cairo Museum.

A vast new museum is under construction in the outskirts of Cairo to house the innumerable artifacts , mummies and jewelries that the Cairo museum has no space for so it will be open to the future visitors in a few years. They are finding new treasures, mummies and artifacts almost every month somewhere in Egypt because numerous teams of archaeologists are working to unearth what lay buried under the sand and rubble. One woman from the Dominican Republic is still looking for the crypt of Cleopatra and Mark Antony somewhere near Alexandria and has found some coins and statues of Cleopatra there that indicates a crypt still hidden.

The famous temple of Abu Simbel in Aswan was relocated piece by piece to a higher ground due to the rising water of the Aswan dam. The original site is now deep under water.

When you visit Egypt, one name pops up most frequently everywhere is that of Ramses. I have noted at least 7 generations of Ramses and their queens so it goes by Ramses I,II,III,IV,V,VI,VII of which Ramses II is probably most known as well as his wife Nefertari. The chronology of all the rulers of Egypt is very long so it is not worth repeating them here.

The story of Ramses the 2nd is well known in the Old Testament of the Bible where it is mentioned that he grew up with Moses who was found floating in a reed basket in the river where the queen was bathing so she brought the child home and raised him as her own. She knew that Moses was a Jewish child but hid this fact from everyone. Later Moses realized who he was and what he was expected to do to save his people so he took all the Jews out of Egypt to Palestine but not without a fight with Ramses.

It is mentioned in the Bible that the Egyptians forced all the Jews to build the pyramids because they were slaves but this is now proven to be wrong. The pyramids were built by the Egyptian farmers and laborers when the Nile was flooding and they could not do any farming. They were not slaves and they were paid to build the pyramids. They cut all the stones from the quarries in distant places and floated them up the river to the pyramid sites in Giza and elsewhere.

The exact role of the Jews in the pyramid building is still unknown and open to guesswork but there is no doubt that Moses was their leader who helped them escape Egypt and brought them over to the Palestine.

When you look at the well preserved mummy of Ramses II in the Cairo museum, you will see the King who as a child played with Moses and later became his enemy when Moses wanted to leave and bring out all the Jews to Palestine. There is no trace of Moses anywhere except what you read in the old testament but Ramses II is still here or what remains of him. Egyptians were master of the craft of preserving bodies that they hid in massive stone sarcophagi deep underground where they were preserved. The thieves had no respect for their royalties so they broke some crypts and looted what they could which must have been plenty.

I will now present to you many videos that show the splendor of the burial chambers of many Kings and Queens that have survived thousands of years of obscurity because they were buried so that no one will ever find them but they underestimated the very determined thieves.

The wall paintings in the tunnels leading to the crypts are very well preserved as you will see in the videos because the grave looters were not interested in the paintings and Hieroglyphs on the walls so did not deface them or damage them. What is causing damage to them now is the heavy influx of camera toting tourists who take photos with flash even if told not to do so. The exposure to the outer air is also causing some damage to the brightness of the paintings but the Egyptian authorities are trying their best to preserve them.

The temples, monuments and statuaries in the open have not survived the ravages of time well so you will find them in ruins in which some traces of bright paintings are still visible on the stone columns and the ceilings. The Egyptian history is found all along the Nile where the Pharaohs built their palaces, temples , cities etc. and desired to be buried in the valleys to become immortals. The fact that the Black pharaohs of Kush down south in Sudan also ruled the entire Egypt at one time and left their pyramids and numerous temple ruins is a lesser known part of the history so read my blog on it here called The glory of Meroe

Also read my previous blog called Egypt’s lost queens that you will find very interesting that has relevance to this blog.

I will start the photos and videos here with the photo of Ramses II and his queen Nefertari in the temple of Abu Simbel in Aswan that was saved and relocated to higher ground with the aid of UNESCO. It is a world heritage site as most other sites in Egypt are.

Source : Google photo of Ramses the II and his queen Nefertari in Abu Simbel, Aswan

Source : Google photo of the temple at Abu Simbel where the Sun aligns itself to interior of the temple at a particular time.

Here are the three most famous queens of ancient Egypt

Source : Google photo of a painting of Queen Nefertari

Source : Google photo of Queen Hatshepsut who ruled as Pharaoh

Source : Google photo of Queen Nefertiti

Source : Google photo of the tomb of Nefertari

Note : The following 12 videos will show you in great detail the burial sites, crypts and the sarcophagi of great Pharaohs and Queens of ancient Egypt in the Valley of the Kings and Queens in Luxor. They are sourced from U tube.

1. Ramses I burial site in the Valley of the Kings in Luxor

2. Ramses the II tomb in the Valley of the Kings in Luxor

3. Ramses the III in the valley of the Kings in Luxor

4. Ramses the IV tomb in the Valley of the Kings in Luxor

5. The tomb of Ramses V and VI in the Valley of the Kings in Luxor

6.The tomb of Ramses the VII in the Valley of the Kings in Luxor

7. Ramses IX tomb in the Valley of the Kings in Luxor

8.Tutan Khamun’s tomb in the Valley of the Kings in Luxor

9. Seti I tomb in the Valley of the Kings in Luxor

10. Seti II tomb in the Valley of the Kings in Luxor

11. Queen Nefertari tomb in the Valley of the Queens in Luxor

12.Valley of the Queens in Luxor and some notable tombs

People in Egypt say that the best time to visit the Valley of the Kings, Queens and other prominent sites in Luxor , Aswan or Dendera etc. is the cooler winter months starting November. The summer heat is too much unless you are used to it. Hats. sunglasses and water bottles are a must. Egypt has so much to offer that it is impossible to see them all just in one visit . Learn as much as you can before you visit Egypt . You will be surprised at the beauty of the ancient civilization they are so proud of.

Note : My blogs are also available in French, Spanish, German and Japanese languages at the following links as well as my biography. My blogs can be shared by anyone anytime in any social media.

les blogs en français.

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Blogs von Anil in Deutsch

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Anil’s biography in English.

Biographie d’Anil en français

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Anil’s Biografie auf Deutsch

Anil’s biography in Japanese

Биография Анила по-русскиu

Glory of Meroë

Source : Google photo of the pyramids at Meroe in Sudan

Synopsis : What are we if we do not value of our heritage? How can any nation go forward that does not know or value where it came from? The ancient kingdom of Sudan based in Meroë ruled over the entire land from Meroë to Alexandra but the sand of time has obscured its history except a few pyramids found in Meroë and some ruins along the Nile. The neglect and indifference to its past glory does nothing to preserve it.

How many of you have ever heard of Meroë let alone where is it? Many of you have visited the great Pyramids of Giza near Cairo and have wandered through the vast Cairo museum to look at the numerous statues and mummies that are well preserved just like we did last year. We wondered at the great civilization it represented over thousands of years and the beauty of their potteries , their jewelries,.

We were stupefied to see the splendor of their past history so well preserved , it boggles the mind. We saw the glitter of polished statues with perfect symmetry in black granite or alabaster that were made thousands of years ago by artisans with primitive tools that is so wonderful.

We saw the dazzling colors of paint in their crypts of decorated walls full of hieroglyphs in the valley of the kings in Luxor and the temple of Hatshepshut . We saw the wonderful temples of Luxor and other temples just across the Nile that stand as witness to their glorious past they left behind in their temple arts, sculptures and their history etched in great detail in their stone obelisks and numerous temples.

I have published some blogs that you may like to see here about Egypt that we visited and were so impressed. ( A memorable journey to Egypt and The Cairo museum)

But have you ever heard of Meroë ? It is in Sudan that very few tourists ever visit or know about. But long ago the Pharaohs of Sudan ruled the entire kingdom that stretched from Meroë to Alexandria and left behind the pyramids and numerous temples along the stretch of Nile that is being gobbled up by the ever expanding sands of the desert.

Sudan is not a well known country and definitely not a country the tourists visit because it had a long simmering war in the Darfur region in the west and in the south that made Sudan a country most people wanted to avoid visiting. The security being an issue, the visitors were subjected to rigorous screening, numerous military check points and other restrictions but I was stationed in Sudan working as the project manager of a UN project that often gave me the opportunity to visit Ed Damer where I had my staff . On my way I stopped at Meroë pyramids near Shendi north of Khartoum and was impressed by their beauty even in ruined states .

There are more pyramids in Sudan than all of Egypt but they are not as grand as that of Giza. They seldom reach a height of over 30 feet but are just as impressive. The etchings and the hieroglyphs still visible are of very fine quality but the vandals have destroyed most of them looking for hidden treasures. Some have callously scratched them with graffiti like Mohamed loves Fatima etc. because they do not value their past being a Muslim country now.

Now there are some efforts by the Sudanese government to repair some of the damage to the Pyramids in Meroë and in other sites so it is a welcome step taken by them to preserve what they still can. Sudan has numerous sites of great archaeological importance that need immediate attention because vandals still try to damage them in search for hidden treasures.

There is a site that once had a huge gold plated marker on top of a mountain that flashed in the bright sun and served as a beacon to guide the travelers through the vast desert but now there is just a tell tale sign of it and no gold.

Sudan was reputed for its gold and the source of slaves in the past so the Romans and the Egyptians before them tried to conquer it but stopped going further south of Sudan because the real black Africa to them was an unknown territory full of swamps , mosquitos and dangerous tribes so only Herodotus ventured further south.

We know of Sudan only in bits and pieces because of the rule of Great Britain there, the murder of Gen. Gordon and the revenge taken of his murder by the fanatic hordes of the madman called Mahdi in Khartoum by Gen. Kitchener later but this part of the history of Sudan has faded and has given rise to the present day Islamic Republic of Sudan where the fanaticism rules. They have tried to erase all vestiges of their British rule but some still remain in some parts of Sudan.

I have traveled through many parts of Sudan as the project manager of a large project that had many sites to cover from the Western Darfur to the north of Khartoum up to Ed Damer. What surprised me was the indifference of the Sudanese to their glorious past that was so unlike the Egyptians. No Egyptian worth his salt would be so callous toward their heritage as the Sudanese but at one time the Sudanese Pharaohs ruled the entire region up to Alexandria. It was no doubt the most glorious period in their history but hardly any Sudanese mentions it.

It is now up to the Sudanese government to make people aware of their glorious parts and allocate resources to preserve what can still be preserved. There are many archaeologists and people interested in the preservation of the Sudanese historic sites including the people funded by the UNESCO and other countries that are mapping various sites and restoring what can be restored.

What is interesting is the fact that the sites that are declared as the World Heritage sites by the UN such as Meroë are now drawing attention to a period of their history that most Sudanese take for granted and hardly pay much attention to it. Perhaps a push for tourism like in Egypt will bring in the dollars that then can be used to improve their historical sites the way Egypt has done.

I have some videos to show you what an Australian traveler has filmed while traveling from Egypt to Sudan along the Nile focusing on the Nubian people and the ruins of numerous historic sites he found all along the river that still serves as the life line of the country. Whether you visit Egypt or Sudan, you will notice that beyond the narrow confines of the Nile on both sides , there is nothing but the barren desert .

From the air you will see green narrow patch of land on both sides of the Nile where people live and grow their crops as they have always done since the antiquity. The kings and Pharaohs fought for this narrow strip of land and built their empire based on the resources that this arid land could provide.

What is so astonishing is the fact a black Pharaoh of Kush rose to prominence to rule the entire Nubia and Egypt 4000 years ago when the rest of the world slumbered totally oblivious of the great civilization that flourished along the Nile in Sudan. What the world still is unaware of is that there are still remnants of Sudan’s glorious past scattered all along the Nile that bear witness to what once was and is being swallowed by the unrelenting sand of the desert.

Note : These three videos are sourced through U tube

The story of the Kusheites and their empire that covered most of Egypt as well as the northern part of Sudan is told by Zeinab Badawi in great detail in the video below that needs little explanation. She shows what still remains in Sudan as mostly ruins of once great palaces , pyramids and other structures throwing some light on the long forgotten empire and its rulers. What the sand and time has covered and destroyed will not be known until a thorough excavation takes place at numerous sites but what remains visible shows the glory of the Kush kingdom.

There are numerous Pharaohs and their queens buried in Meroë along with their concubines, servants and slaves who were buried alive along with their masters. So there must be a large number of burial pits or underground burial chambers with untold riches buried in it but very few have been excavated so far. The sand of the desert has obliterated any trace of such crypts. There has not been any systematic effort like in the Valley of the Kings in Egypt near Luxor so Meroë is still engulfed in mysteries.

Some foreigners tried to look for the riches in the pyramids so blew them up to look for it until the locals enraged at such destruction of their heritage chased them out but the damage was done.

Today Sudan is going through a revolution where a long entrenched dictatorship is overthrown by a freedom loving people who are once again coming out of the stupor created by their centuries of indifference and neglect of their glorious past and are paying attention to preserve what remains in Meroe and elsewhere.

Please read my chapter on Sudan in my biography to learn more on Sudan here : https://storyofalifetimeofanil.wordpress.com/2017/12/07/chapter-thirteen-land-of-mahdi-sudan-1991-to-1994/

Note : My blogs are also available in French, Spanish, German and Japanese languages at the following links as well as my biography. My blogs can be shared by anyone anytime in any social media.

les blogs en français.

Mis blogs en espagnol

Blogs von Anil in Deutsch

My blogs in Japanese

My blogs at Wix site

tumblr posts    

Blogger.com

Medium.com

Anil’s biography in English.

Biographie d’Anil en français

La biografía de anil en español.

Anil’s Biografie auf Deutsch

Anil’s biography in Japanese

Биография Анила по-русскиu

A treasure trove of visual delight

I present to you eleven episodes of the series called Our planet that has English subtitles and the wonderful narration by David Attenborough that are nothing short of most wonderful. Many of you may not have access to Netflix so it is for you to enjoy.

Source : Google photo of Sir David Attenborough

Sir David Frederick Attenborough is an English broadcaster and natural historian. He is best known for writing and presenting, in conjunction with the BBC Natural History Unit, the nine natural history … Wikipedia

Those of you who have Netflix, just type Our Planet and see all the episodes there with dazzling colors and clear narrative of David . The subtitles are in English . I cannot find them in other languages so please be patient and try to follow the subtitles and the slow and wonderful narration of David Attenborough. I am sure you will understand most of it.

Source : Netflix documentries

Source : Netflix documentaries

Source : Netflix documentaries

Source : Netflix documentaries

Source : Netflix documentaries

Source : Netflix documentaries

Source : Netflix documentaries

Source : Netflix documentaries

Source : Netflix documentaries

Source : Netflix documentaries

Source : Netflix documentaries

There is so much knowledge , so many films, so many documentaries like above and so many books on any subject that you can spend a lifetime learning and may not cover even a small part of it.

But we all have a natural desire to learn about our world, our wild life , our forests, our eco system etc. so who better to teach you all than Sir David Attenborough ? He is a master story teller who presents incredibly vivid films in unbelievably dazzling colors that will mesmerize you. After seeing them you will want to share them with your loved ones and friends.

For once I am not writing about social issues that affects us all no matter where live but about knowledge that is priceless.

Note : My blogs are also available in French, Spanish, German and Japanese languages at the following links as well as my biography. My blogs can be shared by anyone anytime in any social media.

les blogs en français.

Mis blogs en espagnol

Blogs von Anil in Deutsch

My blogs in Japanese

My blogs at Wix site

tumblr posts    

Blogger.com

Medium.com

Anil’s biography in English.

Biographie d’Anil en français

La biografía de anil en español.

Anil’s Biografie auf Deutsch

Anil’s biography in Japanese

Биография Анила по-русскиu

Homme riche pauvre homme

via Homme riche pauvre homme

Rich man poor man

via Rich man poor man

Rich man poor man

Source : Google photo of rich man and poor man

Synopsis : It is a fact of life that some people are more blessed than others although their numbers remain small. They are called rich who dominate over others but most people are not rich who are content to get their basic necessities. The poor people work for the rich who become richer as they had in the past but some rich people do play a role in the development of their country as businessmen and private entrepreneurs.

Our world is divided between the rich and the poor where the poor outnumber the rich by a million to one or may be more. In all countries I see the rich and poor so there is no exception. Only the degree of poverty varies from country to country. So the economists start using the words like developed countries , developing countries and underdeveloped countries that are also known as failed states like Somalia or Yemen where there is no democracy and the very basic needs of people are not met by their governments.

But the so called developed countries have their own share of poverty that their governments try to downplay by saying that they are the richest countries but it does not help the poor. The poverty affects everybody irrespective of race, skin color or ethnicity. The very poor people in so called rich countries may have a roof over their head and may even have a jalopy to drive but they suffer from joblessness, low education and fall through the crack of their social security system so they are called poor.

They get by doing odd jobs they can find once in a while but face nothing but a bleak future while the educated people get good jobs and live in decent apartments or houses of their own. Their children go to decent schools and later colleges so they can look forward to decent jobs that put them in the middle class that gives them the financial security the poor people do not have. They can afford to drive fancy cars and even take vacations but the poor and the very poor people suffer.

You see them sleeping in the subway stations covered in rags or playing guitar while the passerby drop a few coins in their open guitar case. It may earn them a meal but nothing else so they are called the jobless and the homeless people who have no future. Often you see the policemen harassing them and forcing them to move on but where can they go?

There are some charitable organizations that provide some food for them and often a place to stay. There are food banks that offer free food to the poor and very poor but they cannot help all the poor people. In Asia where there are many poor people, their governments struggle to provide them with jobs, shelters and food so they end up living in shanties under deplorable conditions and in destitution. They may number in millions but they produce many children in spite of their poverty so their number keeps growing astronomically.

So one can now see that there are many categories like very poor, poor, lower middle class, upper middle class , rich and lastly super rich in any country. If you leave the super rich and the rich aside, you will end up with the 95% of the total population in any country developed or not.

As a country develops, it creates more jobs for its citizens and brings the poor people who have some education and marketable skills into the work force so they climb out of poverty into the middle class that grows as the economy grows. We see this trend in China and India that helps the poor people to move up and join the ranks of the middle class thus reducing the actual number of poor people in their countries.

As the international trade and commerce grows between various countries, we see the growth and the development in many countries where people are getting more opportunities to get jobs and start earning decent wages that help improve their life style. We see how a very poor country like Bangladesh or Cambodia are slowly developing their country with the earnings from their exports of manufactured goods and helping many poor people get jobs in their garment factories or other such enterprises.

The nature blesses some countries with enormous natural resources while the countries that do not have natural resources like oil and mineral deposits struggle to grow their economy. The desert Bedouins in the Middle Eastern countries never thought that one day they will greatly benefit from their oil deposits but they did. Their oil money provided them the ability to develop their country but they did not have the skills to build factories and cities so they sought the help of migrant workers from other countries who built their cities and the infrastructure and sent home their remittances that helped grow their own countries.

But there are many countries that are potentially rich in oil resources or have tremendous mineral deposits but they suffer due to wars and destruction on a massive scale resulting in widespread poverty and destitution . Libya, Iraq, Syria and many other potentially rich countries continue to suffer due to wars that have brought nothing but misery to them. People in Afghanistan and Pakistan suffer not because they lack natural resources but because of long and never ending wars and political upheavals.

A rich country like Zimbabwe that was once the bread basket of southern Africa that has rich diamond and other mineral deposits suffers from poverty and gross mismanagement of their economy for a very long time but now is coming out of it slowly while a  great oil rich country like Venezuela suffers from mismanagement of its once vibrant economy while people suffer.

So how a country manages to govern its people has a direct effect on its people who depend on the government to create jobs for them and help them come out of their predicaments. People in oil rich countries should not have to wait in line for a loaf of bread  like in Venezuela but that is what is happening there.

After the last world war , the Europeans had to struggle very hard to rebuild their destroyed cities and homes , their roads and bridges and their factories so they got some help through the Marshall plan. But it was their own hard work that made them repair all the war damage and rebuilt Europe. Most countries in Europe have prospered and have become strong agricultural and industrial exporters that has made them richer although there are pockets of poverty in some parts among the immigrants, the Roma people and the minorities that do not get the full benefits of the richness of Europe.

The Japanese and the Koreans probably suffered the most from the last war but now Japan stands as the number three economy of the world where most people if not all live comfortably as middle class while we all know the success of the South Korean people. So the eradication of poverty does not only depend on their government  but also on the people who have to work hard, get the education and join the work force the way the Japanese and the Koreans did. They have developed strong work ethics that makes them produce quality products the world wants so they have prospered.

These two countries mentioned do not have oil or other mineral deposits but they have prospered just the same because they import the raw materials and turn them into finished products that they sell abroad so the resource poor countries can learn a thing or two from the hard working Japanese or the Koreans.

China is another country that has uplifted hundreds of millions of its poor people into the middle class because it created millions of jobs for them just like in India with one big difference. China is ruled by the autocratic government that can quickly decide on  projects and allocate money for it while a democratic India has a slower pace of growth due to its bureaucracy and its cumbersome process.

Historically there always have been the poor and a few rich people who ruled over them so the poor lived in hovels of mud huts in villages with no road, water or healthcare facilities while the very rich kings and queens lived in their fabulous palaces filled with untold riches. The poor only lived at the mercy of the kings and queens so they had no choice. They were not educated because there were very few educational institutions so they remained poor cultivating their land to grow food for others and paying taxes making their kings richer and them poorer.

Then came revolutions in France, Russia and in other countries where they overthrew their kings and queens to usher in the era of democracy based on equality, fraternity and justice for all. The end of the colonial period after the last war made many countries get their independence so they got to choose their government for the first time and the chance to participate in their nation building process.

While we all agree that a democracy is better than autocracy, we must also accept the fact that no democracy is perfect because there are corrupt people who get elected so they tend to fill their own pockets from the public coffers and stealing from the poor people who elected them. So all democracies are work in progress and will not become representative governments unless they eradicate corruption and elect good and honest people dedicated to serve the people . They are lofty goals to achieve but possible in the long run. Most countries are now far richer than they were 50 years ago in spite of corruption and greedy elected officials so we can safely say that people are better off than before when they were under the rule of kings and queens.

The democracy in most countries has given rise to thousands of NGOs and private institutions that look after the human rights of people , help rescue people from the grip of traffickers, help save wildlife and the nature from pollution , help spread education and skills, keep an eye on corruption and help poor people in million different ways.

Most of all the spread of democracy has given the poor people a voice that they never had to determine their own future so they use it to elect people who promise to serve them and remove them from office if they fail. They could never do that when they were ruled by the kings and queens.

Now let us see the role the very rich people play in any country.  While the poor always envy the rich and the very rich, the rich people invest in industries that create jobs for people in the private sector. They own corporations that run various industries that manufacture all we need or what we aspire to own someday. The government creates jobs in the government sector but the private industries run their business efficiently because they can hire the best talent available. When the communist Russia tried to control every aspect of the agricultural and industrial production there, they failed because they produced shoddy products and gave no incentive to the farmers to produce. Their collective farms and factories were run by inefficient people.

In all countries private industries out perform the government owned factories although there may be a few exceptions here and there. In the process the private corporations become enormously rich so this wealth created by the workers ends up in the hands of less than 1% of the world population so they become the de facto rulers and the rest their subjects. This will always be so and has always been so. The vast wealth of the world created by you and me end up in the hands of very few but those few rich people who run large corporations invest in the development of the country .

The super rich companies like Apple and Amazon invest billions of dollars in factories to bring products to you that you need . Amazon itself has made e commerce a worldwide phenomenon but there are many others . In the process they have created millions of jobs to make those products in large factories. Many super rich people become great philanthropists who give away most of their wealth like Bill Gates.

Here in the Philippines , all the malls and shopping centers are built by few very rich people who make a lot of money from them because they invest money on which they expect a good return. The government proposes development projects , allocates funds and then the private contractors build the projects like roads, airports, schools, hospitals etc. These private contractors then hire millions of people to complete the project.

But in the past the kings lived in massive forts and palaces in great comfort that the poor people built for them but they remained poor. So I do not resent the rich or the super rich as long as they invest their resources to create jobs for the poor and uplift them to the middle class , invest in healthcare facilities for everybody, develop great educational institutions, spend money on research to develop new and cheaper drugs , give their employees better wages and a chance to climb the corporate ladder, build better and affordable homes everywhere and do all these things so that the country as a whole can make progress. The government can only do so much . The rest is up to all of us rich or poor.

“Ask not what the country can do for you but ask what you can do for the country.”

(A quote from John F. Kennedy but it was from his speech writer Ted Sorensen.)

Note : My blogs are also available in French, Spanish, German and Japanese languages at the following links as well as my biography. My blogs can be shared by anyone anytime in any social media.

les blogs en français.

Mis blogs en espagnol

Blogs von Anil in Deutsch

My blogs in Japanese

My blogs at Wix site

tumblr posts    

Blogger.com

Medium.com

Anil’s biography in English.

Biographie d’Anil en français

La biografía de anil en español.

Anil’s Biografie auf Deutsch

Anil’s biography in Japanese

Биография Анила по-русскиu

A sense of community ( in Japanese )

via A sense of community ( in Japanese )

Gemeinschaftsgefühl

via Gemeinschaftsgefühl

Un sentido de comunidad

via Un sentido de comunidad

Un sens de la communauté

via Un sens de la communauté