The good and bad sides of life.

My Nigerian friend Alexander lived in Libya for three years. Some of it under Gaddafi. And the surprising thing to me was his take on Gaddafi. That life was good under Gaddafi. An interesting perspective. Because in America, Gaddafi has been portrayed as a despot. The personification of evil. I suspect there was bad and good in Gaddafi. A blend. That might apply to almost any ruler, any leader. In any country. Even American presidents. Take George Bush, for instance. He probably was responsible for more deaths than Gaddafi. Out of political blunders. Out of needless and obscene wars. American deaths. Iraqi deaths. Soldiers. Civilians. Innocents. That’s the way it is. Americans like to think we’re the good guys. The others are the bad guys. Truth is, we all have good sides and bad sides.  Even Gaddafi. Alexander said that Gaddafi saw that everyone in Libya either had a job, or if unemployed, received  a cash stipend every month. To get by. In a reasonable, comfortable manner. Even if you weren’t a Libyan citizen. Just a foreigner, like Alexander. Sure, Gaddafi was a dictator. Set some hard and fast rules that some people didn’t like. On some matters, he was a religious zealot. Outlawed drinking booze. No smoking, too. Women had to remain virgins. Unless they were married. Rigid rules. But Alexander said he treated the vast majority of Libyans and foreign residents decently. Alexander said life in Libya was better than in Nigeria. Less poverty. More employment. Alexander worked on a poultry farm. Assisting the staff veterinarian. Now he’s living in Italy. Barely making a living. As a street vendor. Life in Libya became dangerous, especially for foreigners, after Gaddafi was ousted in a civil war. Italy sent a ship to rescue 2,000 refugees. And Alexander came over in a little boat, with 20 other refugees. He’s been in Italy for a year. Learning the Italian language. He’s already conversant. And also speaks good English and Arabic. He’s only 26. And in search of the good life. Hasn’t found it yet. He’s had three years of veterinary medicine training. But in today’s world, there’s no guarantee of a good life. Especially for the poor and the unemployed. That’s the bad side of life. –Jim Broede