Back In Black

Remember the song: The Devil Went Down to Georgia, by the Charlie Daniel’s Band, with its dueling banjo solos - well, I thought the Devil should’ve won. But then again, I’ve always been a little left of center.

I also thought Darth Vader was by far, cooler, than Luke.

Of course, the Devil (regardless of his banjo playing skills and funky rhythm) and Darth aren’t known for their truthfulness and benevolence. But I’d much rather deal with a man clad in black with a sincere heart, than one wearing a pressed collar and a sweater vest who lies easier than he breathes.

It would be handy if, in life, the bad guys maintained a certain dress code that marked their intentions and value system. Unfortunately, life doesn’t work that way. And it seems, more often than one can hardly stomach, the bad guy is dressed like Mr. Rogers, a Priest (although they’re attire always provoked my suspicion), or a uniform.

With today’s level of technology, one would think there’d be an invention that helps the masses identify who is good and who is bad. Although, on some level good or bad is too vague of a label, in theory it sounds good. So let’s continue...

I’m thinking - something that makes one glow depending upon their level of deceit, ill conduct and deviousness. In essence, the more rotten they are, the brighter they glow. I can tell you this, my previous attorney would be glowing bright enough to light an entire town. And instead of paying him more money than I care to admit, I would’ve turned and walked the other way, had there been a visible indicator of his malfeasance. Instead, all I had were verbal reassurances and empty promises.

Imagine all the people that would be walking around glowing. You may think this is my silliest blog to date, but - it’s one that produces a whimsical image in my mind, and if you give it a moment you’ll see the truth thats mingled into these seemingly silly sentences (say that ten times fast). Think of all the hardship that would be avoided. Instead of resting solely upon the look on someone’s face or by searching deep within their eyes for the truth, one would simply watch as the person in question begins to glow with intensity as they speak. It would make for an enlightening courthouse, literally. The whole building would be illuminated by a cornea scorching glow. In fact, I think the impossible-to-hide-light would instantly streamline the legal system, not to mention the political system. I can just hear voter’s now, “Well...I sure liked what the man was saying, but...I couldn’t vote for him...He was glowing so bright my eyes started to water. No...I went with the other guy. He didn’t say everything I wanted to hear, but...he also didn’t glow.”

As integrity and morals become a thing of the past, I believe this built in polygraph would be quite helpful. One’s true self would be evident. And for those of us who do still value integrity and morals, we could live freely. Whether long haired and bearded, covered in tattoos or dressed in black, the world would have little excuse by which to unfairly judge us. 

It wouldn’t matter if we merely said all the right things, or were seen sitting in a church pew or at a school function - our goodness would be determined by whether we glowed.

Sane