I've long been a fan of "Candide" (both the novella by Voltaire and the comic operetta by Leonard Bernstein but for this comment I mean the operetta) and I've b

I've long been a fan of "Candide" (both the novella by Voltaire and the comic operetta by Leonard Bernstein but for this comment I mean the operetta) and I've been unable to stop myself from watching the "Auto-da-fe" section lately. It's a biting satire of the glee that people feel while scapegoating their victims. (My understanding is that Voltaire was so disgusted by the inquisition burning heretics to stop earthquakes that he felt moved to write the work in the first place). The music itself veers from a sort of celebratory samba to a grim spectacle as the show trial proceeds and when the moment comes to hang the accused, the choir wails "pray for us!" as the judge/jury recite prayers. I think my favorite line from the whole thing is "We chant a pax vobiscum, and hang the bastard high!" It captures the irreconcilable conflict of the high ideals of Christianity with the seedy reality of organized religion that I couldn't help but observe as a child and rather quickly drove me away. Learning that Bernstein (et al - I'm not sure who wrote which lyrics) and obviously Voltaire had seen the same things before me made me feel less alone. And once you see this behavior, it's hard not to notice it again. Find a group of people and blame the ills of society on them, and we can all enjoy the cruelty carried out against them. And hey buy a t-shirt (or a Trump steak) while you're at the show.