Two Quotes

Many many years ago a wise old man with a long white beard (Aristotle) said: As man is the best of the animals when perfected, so he is the worst when separated from law and justice, for injustice is most dangerous when it is armed and man, armed by nature with good sense and virtue, may use them for entirely opposite ends. Therefore when he is without virtue man is the most unscrupulous and savage of the animals. These words came to mind as I toured through the Terezin concentration camp in the Czech Republic. It’s an 18th century fortress that was converted into a camp by the Nazi regime during World War 2. The Terezin fortress was built to house around 7000 people (max). During the war it was packed with up to 50 000 people. The Nazi’s solved the population problem by continually transporting unlucky souls to Auschwitz (and we all know what happened there). Next to Terezin is a smaller fortress which became a Gestapo prison. It’s now an empty eerie, bland and bleak tourist attraction. Not a nice place to be and not a nice place to visit!

Tunnel, Small Fortress, Terezin

Many small people who in many small places do many small things that can alter the face of the world. I read these words whilst strolling along the East Side Gallery in Berlin. The East Side Gallery is a 1.3km section of the Berlin wall which has been coated with amazing art from various artists from all over the world. It's one big heartening slap in the face to that barrier - in more ways than one - of human freedom and dignity.

The East Side Gallery, Berlin