Ms. Margaret, Muza dear and Andrew :tiphat::tiphat::tiphat: (some day you will have to teach me how to enter these "crazy and funny" emoticons of yours...).
"Lord Of The Flies", by WG was the first book, I read during English classes in public school from the 6. grade, and I can only say it had a huge impact on me. I must have read it all together some 10 times over the years, and I have seen the film as well two times. The fight between right and wrong, good or bad, democracy or tyrany? Also they decide for a God (religion).
The interesting part for me, related to the reverse of wealth to the poor countries and likewise the poor society to the former rich is, that WG´s idea is that no matter what sort of Robinson Cruso situation we´re in, we will automaticly always try to recreate a society of law and order, as we have been taught from childhood, through school days and as adults - after certain rules, and there has to be one leader (at least) one Lord of the flies.
These young school boys, who end up on this deserted island, with none whatsoever adults around - we don´t know how they got there, wether the reason is a war on nukes or a shipwreck, they are simply there as survivors and not one single adult to take responsabilty for these kids, and the first thing they do is to elect a leader. But is it the right leader???
The story is IMHO that we´re all mostly ants/flies on this planet, who will do what our Lord/leader says or demands, we should do. So we´re free ourselves for taking responsability towards any wrong discissions. A leader is also the one, who is always the mentally stronger person - than the flock he leads.
So in the context of my suggested experiment asking, which group will do better than the other group, if relations suddenly changed. I believe the former wealthy society, but now poor will always do better, than reversed - mostly because a rich/wealthy society always, to be rich - educates the population/the citizens on various skills, for instance how to run a democratical society.
An example:
When the Belgiums (from Europe) finally left the state of Congo in Africa (Congo the biggest state of all in Africa at the size of Europe) after years on end of imperialism, colonisation and apartheit they brought back with them everything they had invested in Congo, down to the last photo copying machines, telephones etc. etc. What they could not bring back they burned, shot to pieces or blew up with explosives. This left Congo with nothing at all and worse with no administration to handle ordinary obligations, for instance no policing, no courts, no working parliament, no administration and no educational institutions, almost like the Belgiums in the year 1500 found Congo - an uncivilised country with no rules of democratical means or tools - the confused out of any order - anarchy.
So my point with mentioning "Lord of the Flies" about the young school boys, due to this specific context of reversing, who were rich and wealthy is, that the society who has been educated on what is important for all citizens, will always win no matter how bad things look at first. The none educated society, who suddenly has everything the rich had before, don´t understand to make equal laws and rules to benefit more people than the opposite, and can only achieve the anarchy - like Congo - because they will always think each and everybody on their own selfish needs.
Just look at Africa today, post Nelson Mandela and the ending of apartheit - completely chaos, no structure, no equallity, no democratical rules and laws - it´s as uncivilised in parts of Africa as it was in the year 1500, with more than 15 civil wars in various states, like the Sudan and Congo where there´s an increasing genoside forgotten by the western world and the UN.
Just some thoughts guys, but thank you for answering.
If everyone changed for the better, we're going to have a better world.
