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No secret will remain hidden forever

Francisco Miraval

According to a story by AFP, more than 45,000 residents of Koblenz, in Germany, were evacuated out of the city on Saturday, Dec. 3, 2011, when, due a drought, the water level of the Rhine River descended and a 4000-pound bomb dropped by British pilots during War World II was discovered.

The unexploded bomb remained under the water for decades. Its discovery led to the evacuation of half of the city, the mobilization of 2,000 police officers, and the temporary closure of one jail, two hospitals, and seven senior citizen homes.

Fortunately, according to AFP, the bomb did not explode. The artifact was deactivated without incident. However, it is said that in Berlin along there are 3,000 unexploded bombs dropped by the Allies during War World II.

The story led me to think about how dangerous is to keep some secrets, even if the secret has been buried for many years. Once circumstances change and the secret is discovered, perhaps, unlike what happened in Klobenz, it may “explode” (metaphorically speaking), with great damage and even catastrophic results for all those involved.

Think, for example, about Patrick Sullivan, 68, former Arapahoe County sheriff in Colorado and a well-known and respected person among local law enforcement officers, to the point that the Arapahoe County detention centers bears his name.

Everything changed for Sullivan on Tuesday, November 29, 2011, when he was arrested after investigators discovered he had maintained for years relationships with gays, protecting them and providing them with drugs in exchange for sex. Paradoxically, Sullivan is now an inmate at the detention center with his name.

I am not talking about what Sullivan allegedly did, but about the fact that he kept a secret for many years. Now, years later, his secret came to the public light and “exploded,” causing great harm to him, his family, and other associated with him.

Also, think about Herman Cain, who last Saturday (December 3) dropped out of the Republican presidential race, unable to respond to allegations of apparent indecent behavior with different women some years ago. Perhaps he is innocent, but the point is that there was a secret he wanted to keep.

I am sure that when RAF pilots dropped bombs over Koblens 70 years ago, they never anticipated that all those years later one of their bombs will be discovered, causing a number of problems. In fact, we seldom take into consideration the long-term consequences of our daily actions.

I never met Sullivan or Cain. However, I feel I can safely speculate that none of them was thinking about the day when their secrets will “explode.” That is normal. We all assume what we do in secret will remain a secret, but that is not the case. Ancient religious traditions (mostly ignore now) teach us that everything now hidden will eventually be revealed.

What other secrets we hide behind the appearance of a normal and moral life? One day, those secrets will also be revealed. What are we going to do then?

 

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