All for power!

There are people who are convinced that there are many naive people in the world who can be fooled with impunity.

Gullible there are, but the vast majority of those who suffer the evil consequences of swindlers are trusting, well-intentioned people, without malice. In short, men and women who are "in the good sense of the word, good", as the great Spanish poet Antonio Machado would say. They are people who are willing to accept the explanations of those who speak to them in good manners, smile at them or give them a pat on the back. 

The bad thing is that simple and honest people, citizens of all cultures and geographies of the Earth, are cannon fodder for a host of tricksters, manipulators, swindlers, liars, forgers, misrepresenters, swindlers, fraudsters and people of bad moral character, who do not abide by human values or the most elementary ethical principles.

Those who by vocation or devotion dedicate themselves to deceit are types who do not belong to a single social sphere. They are part of the aristocracy, the great fortunes, the haute bourgeoisie, the civil service, the liberal professions, the militia, the clergy or the working classes who earn their living by the sweat of their brow, in the true sense of the word. They are lurking everywhere.

The problem is at its worst when some of these types, whom some describe as society's filibusters, dwell among politicians and senior officials in government, the judiciary and the legislature, anywhere in the world and at local, regional, national or federal levels.

Deception and manipulation were already at the top in the former Soviet Union and many other countries for much of the 20th century. Now, in the third millennium, there are examples of nations that remain or have fallen into the clutches of these subjects. Using their wicked arts and the money of their supporters, democracies are in real danger of being dragged down by professional shyster leaders. Instead of setting an example with their supposed good deeds and honesty as statesmen and public servants, they bamboozle ordinary citizens with a happy Arcadia, as long as they vote for them or support what they proclaim.

Practically everyone knows someone who cannot be trusted, a conclusion we can reach by simply observing their deeds, behaviour or by well-documented references. Sometimes you can see them coming, sometimes you can sense it, but they are masters at misleading and hiding their true intentions. They tend to mask themselves by radiating sympathy, smiles here and there... There are even those who are sometimes even detached, especially with other people's money and resources. 

In Spain, some of them have at one time or another passed in front of an Armed Forces or Guardia Civil barracks. And they must have been impressed when they saw and read - in large, capital letters - the motto that appears at the top of the main entrance to every military barracks: "ALL FOR THE FATHERLAND". It is a phrase that was born at the beginning of the 19th century as a way of fighting Napoleon's troops to expel their flags from the homeland and regain the independence that had been stolen from us.

It happens that after seeing it so many times - or ignoring it - we Spaniards do not give importance to those 15 letters. But some have, the tricksters. And they have turned those words into their personal motto: EVERYTHING FOR POWER. It is obvious that they have not fixed it in their private homes, offices or head offices. But they have it engraved in their minds day and night. It is their horizon for today and tomorrow, to ensure their future the day after tomorrow.

And you know what I say? That it shows. Very much so. They can dissemble, lie, deceive, they can be identified. They have made a mockery of their own and strangers on so many occasions that their credibility is between 0 and -1. Only their sycophants and those who benefit from their megalomania applaud with their ears everything that those who are also described as tricksters sweep along in their path, whenever any obstacle gets in the way of their goal to reach or remain at the top under their north of ALL FOR POWER.

Although they try to wrap their intentions in fine words, you have to be very vigilant not to fall for their schemes of deception. Professional con artists are so verbose and so brazen that when they are caught red-handed in lies or contradictions, they do not blush or even bat an eyelid. Nothing fazes them. It is as if they hear rain.

When in speeches, negotiations, debates or in simple inconsequential conversations the phrase "I will be honest with you" is used, be on alert. Ask yourself why this person has to underline what every good person is supposed to do: to be sincere. They repeat over and over again how hard they work, and even allow themselves to claim that they will "give their all" to carry out this or that initiative. Nothing could be further from the truth. It's just cheap talk for the benefit of the gallery.

Their scams are based on the trust and ignorance that those who listen to them place in them. Have you ever seen a con man in the exercise of his manipulative activity? They usually speak in emphatic phrases, raising their voices and making statements full of assurances in order to cajole those who listen to them. In the national and international context, the executive power-brokers are so full of lies and contradictions that some of them would be worthy of the Guinness Book of Fallacies award.

There are two troubling variants of the trickster. One is those who speak in an angry, aggressive tone and raise their voices. It's a tactic to embarrass those in front of them. It works, until someone with the same characteristics comes along and retorts in a more animated manner. 

But there is another version that is even more dangerous than the previous one. Those who add cockiness to many of the factors already described. They are recognisable from a distance because if they are good-sized, slender and good-looking men, when they walk they tend to move their heads slightly in an unconscious act intended to emphasise their facial features.

They sway their heads from one side to the other so slightly that this movement is almost imperceptible. They are predators in every possible way. Whoever knows one, run away from him or her like the plague and COVID-19. Then let me know... to do the same and try to vaccinate myself against their manipulations.