Murals of Evil

I have wondered why some images provoke such public disgust while others, in many ways no different, are acceptable for public consumption. In what passes for a student center located on a campus in Anymetropolitan City, USA I now sit with a cup of coffee and lots of work before me. Behind me, however, hang six framed artistic representations among which are Lenin and Stalin. The other four I'm not so sure of, but I believe they all represent communist leaders. One bears a striking resemblance to a small, but deadly North Korean like Kim Jong Il (or perhaps his father Kim Il Sung); another has a prominent mole on his chin, like Mao Tse Tung. The last two are harder to get a clear idea of. One is obviously lighter skinned and is probably a Spaniard, the other dressed in full military garb, portly, and resembling someone from South America. Whoever these last may be, you might say that among them they've killed hundreds of millions of people, literally.

The surprising thing is this. Put a picture of Hitler up on the wall and a media firestorm is guaranteed.

I have been asking around for the reason that these pictures adorn the walls, believing that someone has a point to make about the evil represented in them. I have been rebuffed a few times by various people for nozing around in a subject that will certainly cause tension. I guess that most people would rather ignore a problem than get involved in it.

But I have also been told there is "nothing wrong with an ideal...."

And now the real heart of the problem is manifest. The pictures on the wall apparently aren't a problem at all.