Kaleidoscope View of a Mad Mad World
by
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INTRODUCTION
A kaleidoscope is a tubular optical instrument in
which loose pieces of colored glass are enclosed at one end of the tube and are
reflected in mirrors so as to display ever changing symmetrical patterns as the
tube is rotated and the pieces shift within the enclosure.
That is also a just description of a mad, mad world
that is, likewise, a maze of continually shifting patterns as evidenced by the
ever-changing governments formed by the loose bits of society that control each
country.
FROM THE AUTHOR--
I published a book in 2002 entitled Iron Shoes in association with Peter
Mars. This non-fiction chronicle relates the personal journey I took in my work
and the travels I made throughout the world. That work encompassed my
occupation as a builder of shopping centers, and as a director of real estate
and development for Sears Roebuck and Company’s eastern territory as well as
for the Hilton Hotel chain. It included working with Clark Clifford of
Washington, DC and former US President Richard M. Nixon. It involved travels in
various countries in Europe and Africa as I was employed by an operative of the
Central Intelligence Agency, the United Nations, and finally as assistant to
the chairman of a Swiss trust.
These became the roads of my life and all of them
eventually took me into totally different directions, none of which were by my
choice. I always looked ahead and never looked back. The roads just seemed to
always be there for me even when obstructions confounded me or blocked my way.
There were always detours that allowed me to continue onward.
It was important to me that I document, before I
died, my journey with a special emphasis on the problems I encountered with
Richard Nixon. I needed to impart my knowledge of what he did as a lawyer for
Japan and as a Vice-president for the United States. This was my focus in
writing Iron Shoes.
Recently, I was invited to the studios of Channel 9
in Augusta, Maine to be interviewed on a television program in which Iron Shoes became the central topic. In
the course of my discussion with the host, Katy Perry, she asked me my thoughts
on the current political situation concerning Iraq and North Korea. I replied
that if the genie ever comes out of the bottle it will never be able to be put
back in the bottle. Her question to me was, “Who is the genie?” That was not an
easy question to answer because I wanted to find one word that would adequately
suffice as a reply. That answer was not a “who” but “what.” The genie is
“hatred.” It feeds the soul of many people globally and once it has taken hold,
it cannot be erased for generations. Although the majority of religions in the
world hold to the basic tenets of love, charity and kindness to others, many do
not practice what they preach.
The proof of what I have discovered about this genie
can be seen in a book I found recently when I was vacationing with my wife in
Greenville, Maine. I happened to go to the Greenville Library where a book sale
was in progress. There I found a book that was well over fifty years old entitled,
“Design for Power – The Struggle for the World” by Frederick L. Schuman and
George D. Brodsky. I purchased the book for fifty cents after reading a few
chapters. The book amazingly detailed the major countries that had some part in
World War I and World War II and how each of them became involved in these
wars. I was familiar with much of this as I had exposed in Iron Shoes similar occurrences in which deals are made by
governments and political games are a way of doing business. Design for Power gave added credibility
to the fact that all governments and people basically operate the same way.
Because I have lived through many of the changes
that have taken place during this period I am more than familiar with these
events. And as I reflect back upon all that I have read about in history and
have witnessed in my lifetime, I become more and more convinced that our world
is truly a kaleidoscope that makes everything look well-balanced when one
glances through the eyepiece but, when there is further investigation, it is
shown to be a disturbing jumble of broken bits and shards, a mirror image of
the corrupt governments that have existed for millennia.
“We may be
pretty certain that persons whom all the world treats ill deserve the treatment
they get. The world is a looking glass and gives back to every man the
reflection of his own face. Frown at it, and it will in turn look sourly upon
you; laugh at it and with it, and it is a jolly, kind companion; and so let all
young persons take their choice.” Thackery
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Book Details
About the Book
Take one look at the world in which we live. It is
an ever-shrinking planet made so by the vast means of communications connecting
one continent to another. It exposes people of all countries to new ideas and
to varied ways of living, most of which are wonderful in the Western
Hemisphere. Yet, the world does not easily accept new ideas nor does it take to
changes, especially in lifestyles. Why? Because of jealousy and the impending
hatred that grows out of the envy fostered by the view of a world where capitalism
is predominant.
In actuality, where the world seems to many to be
the best it can be, appearances can be deceiving. The countries that form this
earth are no more homogeneous than the jagged bits and parts that fill the box
in a five-hundred piece puzzle. Instead, the world is better reflected when one
looks beyond the mirrors that contain the colored shards, which become the
basis for a kaleidoscope. When one looks through the eyepiece, one sees a
perfect design, equal in dimension and shape to every side. This is the way
many people see the world. However, although the pattern is pleasing to the
eye, the truth is that the authentic world is more akin to the broken glass
that produces the symmetrical effect.
A Kaleidoscope View of a Mad, Mad World makes everything look
well-balanced when one glances through that eyepiece. Upon further
investigation, it is shown to be a disturbing jumble reflecting the corrupt
governments that have existed for millennia. Those governments promote wars,
lie to the masses, and are consumed with the greed that they vehemently oppose
publicly.
Take a walk through history with A Kaleidoscope
View of a Mad, Mad World and see for yourself how the world has yet to
change.
About the Author
Martin Olson was born in New Haven, Connecticut in
1926. He attended public school and later Williston Academy in East Hampton,
Massachusetts before enrolling at Yale University. He started his career as a
tracer and draftsman, and following an internal drive to build, design and plan
developments, became a contractor. He later moved to a position as property
manager and consultant for Sears, Roebuck and Company in charge of all
development operations on the Eastern Seaboard. Finally, he became a consultant
and coordinator to a variety of groups in the United States as well as in the
United Nations, and ended up as an assistant to the Chairman of a Swiss Trust.
Martin Olson now lives in Augusta, Maine with his
wife, Iris, doing sculptures, wood and granite carvings and sketches. He says,
“This is the happiest time of my life. Iron
Shoes (a reflection on the theme of his first non-fiction book) carried me
over the rugged roads to retirement and a chance to share what I have learned
in my life with those who must carry on in a world gone mad.”