Broken News
There’re two types of narcotics: Downers cause depression, insomnia, and melancholy; Uppers cause euphoria, excitement, and relaxation.
When intoxicated, some laugh hysterically for no reason; others become miserable. They may remember incidents from the past—my great-great-grandmother died—and cry. When I was a kid, I lost a pair of shoes and cried. The sun is too hot, and cry. They sleep, think the bed is falling, and cry. One to the power of one is one, and they cry. Incidentally, this has become a top discussion questioning math and science, mainly among the famous actor Terrence Howard, top astrophysicist Neil deGrasse, other scientists, and mathematicians. Howard argues that 1 squared must be greater than 1; others are acting like the PFDJ: you are an intruder to science, you are wrong. But I am telling you this so that you don’t think it’s plagiarized from Terrence in the last few weeks of the heated debates. That is from an article I wrote ten years ago before Terrence Howard’s claim went viral; the link is in the description.
Carriers of Negative Energy
Back to the downers who expect everybody to cry along with them in their wailing parties. I am not willing to listen to crybabies anymore. I want my sanity and my positive attitude. I have adopted a new religion, and it has banned me from talking to negative people for a long time. Try it. It works.
Why voluntarily receive negative energy? “I hate the weather; these trees are ugly. You look pale; are you sick? You might have cancer. I hate children; they are annoying when they cry or giggle. Do you really love your spouse?”
Most probably, the talk leads to politics and you state: “keynsamamaE tesamamiEna? Have you ever seen united Eritreans? Do you think Eritrea can ever live in peace? You don’t know anything.”
Who wants such doses of negativity from the downers? Tell them to buzz off and protect your sanity. Tell them pointblank, “I don’t like your pessimism; I already have enough. My car broke and I need to pay the mechanic and pay the bills. Life is tough without you adding pessimism to it.”
They are weird: you mention ten people and you discover they hate nine of them; they hate someone in every country, city, town, or hamlet all over the world. So and so, he is a liar. So and so, he is a Weyane. So and so, he is an opportunist. So and so, he is a traitor … let me find a reason why I hate him.
My Rip Van Winkel Moment
I was feeling tired from the negative energy; after a conversation with a few of them, my energy was sucked out of me. I dozed off for a while and I woke up relaxed and feeling great and healthy. Then one of the pessimists called and read his compilation of all the negative current news. He sobbed for 30 minutes before he burst crying.
I don’t know how it happened but suddenly I discovered I was lying in a different bed, fully exhausted. The downer had sucked all my energy; I wasn’t able to sit, let alone stand up. I had an instant headache, backache, nausea and skin allergy, I even felt pain in my fingernails and eyebrows! Then I collapsed and I think I slept, but his crying was still ringing in my ears. I think I let out a loud scream and I must have passed out, fainted.
When I opened my eyes, all my family, relatives, and friends were looking at me. They told me I slept for three months. They have tried all sorts of medicine, including incense, kerbe, Lehtit, and holy water, and gave up. They said they were waiting for me to die so that they could bury me.
I sprang up from the bed and walked out to the yard. ‘I am alright now’, I assured my family and friends, who were still treating me like a terminally ill person. I sat down and started to think. I found the solution: avoid the downers and keep your sanity. Be liberated like me.
My friends, you can’t get your happiness by buying false moral smugness. It’s easier to shun racism and stopping getting your nose into people’s private lives—if it is your business, deepen your nose as deep as you can. But avoid the downers and their negative energy. or go to bed and sleep for three months, like I did.
Filipos’ Daughter!
When I heard about the wedding of General Filipos’ daughter, I said, “MashaAllah, Bet Maal W’Eyal”. A belated congratulations to the general and the bride. Sorry, I don’t have her name and I don’t trust the racist Pinocchio’s of social media who gave her several names.
To most of them, the issue was not the wedding, but that she married to a Nigerian man! I was so disappointed to see the crude racist elements sticking their Pinocchio noses into a private matter!
If not for the irresponsible and exclusionary policy that the PFDJ (including Filipos) adopted, maybe I would have celebrated the wedding in Eritrea; Filipos could have remained an old acquittance if not an old friend—but that’s normalcy, and the PFDJ detests normalcy.
Unfortunately, and ironically, those who made the loudest and most embarrassingly irrational comments about the wedding consider themselves an opposition to the PFDJ! Really? For what reason, to push the nation back to the stone age, worse than the PFDJ? To advance their primitive demands? Their racism? I feel sorry; many of us must be counted with the. They say there are 3.5 million Eritrean souls. Count me out and say we are 3,499,999. Maybe we can start counting ourselves and leave out the corrupt ones.
It’s idiots like them who are elongating the suffering of Eritreans under oppression.
And it gets worse; an illiterate person screamed, “Nigerians are committing genocide on Eritreans by marrying our girls!” Is there anything more embarrassing than that? Whatever the goons claim to be “struggling for”, the sane must stay a week’s distance away from them. Genuine patriots must condemn such backward and toxic agitation; it is polluting the entire Eritrean discourse.
What we are witnessing is the result of many intentional or unintentional acts of bigotry, racism, and hypocrisy that the PFDJ spread; Eritreans have walked too far towards unity. Today, sadly, many have been reduced to pretending that their heart bleed for unity by simply parroting 9-ethnic groups, as if sloganeering alone is a confirmation of their dedication to unity! Yet, they are mostly the same people, hampering national unity.
Biniam Again
Biniam is already confusing the third-graders who can’t count beyond 3, and I have a solution for them.
In the previous Negarit 279, I told you we are not done with Biniam, on Thursday, he won stage 11 (now it’s 3rd, 8th, and 11th). It’s commendable, I take that, it’s admirable. And I have a solution for those who badmouthed me—for criticizing them, for badmouthing Biniam. They don’t need to count after 3 because they can’t. When Binian wins again, all they need to do is show the fingers of both hands and just say, bzuuuuH teAawitu! Too many victories.
Every Eritrean patriot must be grateful to Biniam for breaking the gloomy cycle and getting us into a positive mood. However, that should not make us forget our predicament. Instead, it must propel us to seek a swift victory against division, racism, and, mainly, bad governance. We deserve freedom. We must emulate his perseverance and drive—but mostly, we must emulate his character, his self-confidence and his proud celebration of his victory.
Finally, I have some advice for the PFDJ, though I know they are hardheaded and do not take any advice. Don’t mistake it for begging, no one is begging you. At least I am not. Citizens are demanding what is due to them.
The victory of Biniam should not be wasted. If the victory is not exploited properly, the euphoria will wane, and it will be back to the life of gloom. Don’t kill the pace. Augment it with equally bold steps. Free the prisoners and announce a reconciliation drive. Don’t stop the euphoria that Biniam brought about.
We will triumph. We will be fine, we deserve it.
Awate Forum