I am just curious. Have you ever heard of the band the “Mucky Pups”? Me neither.
The Mucky Pups were a thrash band in the 1980’s and 1990’s. They had some limited success in Europe and the US. That explains why I never heard of them. They are not my cup of tea. But as I was doing a little research I came across the lyrics of a song they did. The song was called “Walking with the Devil”. Not the more famous “Runnin’ with the Devil” from Van Halen. This is how the lyrics start:
Went walkin’ with Devil,
walkin’ in his shoes,
went walkin’ with the Devil,
thought I had nothing to lose,
Isn’t that how we all think it is? We have this grandiose idea that we can “walk with the Devil”. We see the Devil as someone who, as long as we are aware of whom he is, we can outsmart him. Now I’m not necessarily going to focus on “The Devil” of the Bible. This is more the concept or idea of evil. Aligning ourselves with those we don’t believe in or don’t trust for expediency and to promote our own cause. So the question becomes, do the ends justify the means?
In my mind the answer is clear – NO.
First you have to pay attention to the facts. We believe we can avoid the pit falls of “evil” ourselves by simply knowing that the “evil” exist. That is a very nice thought that brings about visions of unicorns and rainbows. We paint ourselves as just a little too good to be deceived into bad actions. Where this notion falls apart is in the fact that those who we classify as “evil” don’t have the same behavioral limits we do. “Evil” is deceitful. For those who are NOT “evil” there is a point at which we will stop. We will go no further. We will not risk doing “evil” even for our own benefit or to promote our cause.
“Evil” on the other hand has no limits. It (they) will do or say anything it feels is necessary to promote itself or its cause. “Evil” has no problem with stretching, twisting, manipulating what is right as long as their desires are fulfilled. “Evil” will sit you down at its dinner table, feed you the finest meal, give you their finest wine and give you the nicest gifts but will also discard you and stab you in the back at its first opportunity should you no longer be of use.
When it comes to “Walking with the Devil” there are three possible scenarios. The first is when we are confronted by “evil” and we simply turn away. Now understand I am not making this a Republican vs. Democrat thing. Are there “evil” Democrats? Yes there are. But there are also “evil” Republicans and Independents. I’m not talking of those who have a strong belief in what they do and follow that path. Those who believe what they are doing is truly the right thing even if they have a different thought pattern than us. They may be misguided or misinformed but they are not “evil”. I am speaking of those who know their position is flawed (i.e. evil) but will move forward in order to promote their desires. They are driven by their own greed. If we see and know “evil” is present you should walk away. That is the easy answer
Scenario two is the situation where we don’t know we are “walking with the Devil”. We are unaware that those around us, those we are reliant on are “evil”. They simply have us fooled. First, there is some innocence for us in that ignorance. If we are “unaware” of the “evil” nature of those around us we get somewhat of a pass. But it also does not exonerate us from the need to always be looking. Plenty of people have started out with good intentions only to see the power and influence turn them to the dark side. We see this in politics often. People who start out strong but eventually get caught up in the hysteria. We cannot forever use the excuse of having blinders on. If we have those blinders on it is because we allowed them to be put on. We must always be open to the potential change in those around us, even those we call friend. We must always strive to be diligent.
The last, and least forgivable scenario, is when we know we are “walking with the Devil” and choose to continue on. We have that belief that we can control what is happening. It is the belief that we can walk with “evil” but not be influenced by the same “evil”. That we can move forward and assume that what we do is not, nor will ever be, tainted by the wrong things. That is simply a fantasy. The fact that you would allow yourself to “walk with the Devil” is the first step on that very slippery slope. That is the slope that will allow you to make flawed decisions to move your voice or your cause forward. The best way to avoid this scenario is to simply not take that first step.
This may all seem a bit cryptic but in reality it is not. It is a simple warning to all. Democrat, Republican, Independent…. If you see and choose to associate knowingly with “evil” regardless of your own honorable desires, you risk being tainted. You also risk being taken advantage of. But most of all you risk being found “guilty by association”. Once you have chosen to associate with an evil person or group – the bell is rung and it cannot be un-rung. You will forever have that association. Think of it as getting a divorce when you have young children. Sure you can split from the person, you can move, you can desire to never see that person again. But with kids involved you will forever be associated. There will be weddings and funerals, grandchildren and the list goes on. You will never be able to get completely away. Your choices contain lifetime risks.
So here is my advice. Avoid “evil”. Even to the point of avoiding potential “evil”. We as individuals and groups must choose our “friends” carefully. If we choose to risk what we believe in for the easy path by trying to “walk with the Devil” the “Devil’s” deception will eventually capture us. We can believe with all our heart that, as the song says, we “thought we had nothing to lose”. But reality is we have everything to lose. Especially the respect of those who we actually trust.
