I finished reading the Hunger Games series last night around midnight. Not a great idea since I have been trying to wake up at 6:30 most mornings. The late night was not because I could not put the book down but more-so because I wanted to finish the final book in the Trilogy Mockingjay. Before I get into this post I should give a little background to the books. This paragraph will be a spoiler so if you intend to read the series do not finish this paragraph, though I think you can still track with the rest of the post . The series is set in the future, in a country called Panem. This country exists in the land formally known as North America. The country is divided into 12 districts each having a specific purpose in serving the the Capital/Government, which is a dictatorship. For example if you lived in district 12 your main resource is coal. You provide coal for the country and the Capital. District 11 is agriculture and you provide food and so on down the list. About 75 years ago (in the book's time-line) there was a rebellion in district 13 which was trying to overthrow the Capital. They were beat down and annihilated, the punishment for this dissent, was taken out on the 12 districts. To keep the other districts in line the government created the Hunger games. Basically, 1 boy and 1 girl age 12-17 were randomly chosen to fight to the death in a gladiator style game. The victor (the last one alive) would be showered with fame, glory, and money. This was the governments or the totalitarian President Snow’s way of keeping the people in line and showing them the power he had over them. Fast-forward through about 300 pages in the first book and the entire second book which brings us to the final installment. We find out district 13 has not been destroyed but has been building up a rebellion. This rebel force is lead by President Coin, who we find out is not unlike President Snow. These two president’s feel threatened by anyone they feel can usurp their power from them. The book is riddled with injustices that make the reader frustrated, sad, and angry. In the end Justice takes place but not without loss of life and innocence.
After reading the Hunger Games it seems to me not too unlike some governments around the world. Granted there are no hunger games, but senseless killing to show power goes on. Look at Communistic or Totalitarian country’s around the world. “The ends justify the means”, the greater good is the government or revolution, not the people. Those in power feel they have the right to do whatever takes to stay in power. I am truly grateful for being a country like America where our system allows for power to be spread out over three entities. Even though our government is balanced within itself, it is growing in size and power. Once the government starts grabbing more control over private industry, the harder it will be to give control back to the private industry. A main tenet of conservatism is the desire for less government control and power. The paradox is that goal can only be achieved by climbing that very mountain of power. It will take people with character to reach the pinnacle of their human success and hard work, only to dismantle what they spent their life achieving. The only way this can happen is looking beyond the self to the greater good of society. Painfully our culture is becoming more hedonistic and self-serving. Our culture has become an entitlement society, we stopped asking “What can I do for my country?” and starting asking “What can my country do for me?” Even Christianity has been effected, we only pray to God if we need something. The Hunger Games stirred in me an appreciation for our form of Government. Granted it is less than perfect, but we have freedoms, we have rights, and we have dreams. We need to be diligent to keep these ideas alive and well.
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