The unbelievable part came after. The people’s reaction.
In America, when the people learned of the assassination of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, they did not mourn. Thompson’s death was perhaps the most ‘celebrated’ death news we have seen over the Internet. The people in America were not sorry at all. The comments on the Internet seem to show that people are fed up with being empathetic towards the rich.
Many came out with statistical data to show how Thompson’s firm was one of the highest profitable healthcare insurances in America, yet statistically it was also the one with the most amount of claims that were rejected. Perhaps some of the people suffered from these rejections by the healthcare providers, or perhaps they were just projecting as they had suffered similar fates with other healthcare providers.
While unfortunate that a man has lost his life, we cannot say that the people's reactions are unwarranted. We also don't know why the assailant did what he did. All we can clearly deduce is that the people are angry. Angry that capitalist movements are exploiting the poor and rewarding the rich. That the political systems are in place to protect the wealthy first before the people.
On the flip side, President Yoon Suk Yeol of South Korea understood the meaning of ‘power of the people’. Within hours of his call to impose martial law as a means to control Parliament, President Yoon found himself on the oust. The army failed to control Parliament as elected members and people swarmed the streets and Parliament. A motion to impeach him failed to pass by a short margin.
The people of South Korea were an inspiration to many across the world. They took to the streets in record numbers as they opposed the President's dictator ways. I saw many Kenyans reposting the photos with pride as they warned President William Ruto against testing the people's anger.
The world has changed. Right now, no president, king or queen is exempt from facing the wrath of the people. Whether you are rich or powerful, the message from the people is one of frustration. There is a stirring among the people that simply states that they have had it with elitism and misuse of power.
Spanish King Felipe VI was booed and pelted with mud recently as he visited the flooded city of Valencia. Prince William was booed as he visited a university in Northern Ireland recently. And, of course, President Ruto is booed and met with chants of “Ruto must go” everywhere he goes.
The truth is, hardships,
financial crisis, natural disasters and high rates of unemployment globally
have destabilised the working class. It is the regular folks who allow kingdoms
to prosper. It is the citizens who vote for presidents and governments as a way
of bettering their lives. Since the end of World War II, the elites have
forgotten that power resides with the people.
They have pushed the
working folk to the limit with overtaxation, dictatorial moves, capitalism,
economies that benefit the rich and, of course, a lavish display of wealth. Now
the people have begun to push back. They no longer stand for abuse of power
whether you are king or clergy. Everyone will face judgement day if they abuse
their power.
