Mandela was no angel

Do you hold unquestioning down-on-your-knees-no-criticism-allowed reverence for anybody? I beg you to reconsider. Nobody should ever be beyond criticism. This doesn't mean that you can't genuinely like and respect somebody - just but be realistic.

Many people don't form their own opinion, but they readily adopt the opinion that is handed down to them - from the government, the mainstream media, the church, the family, etc. Such uncritical thought I dislike profoundly. I can't say I hate it, because hate is emotional. I vehemently dislike it in a fully rational manner. 

Do not be one of these people. Do your best to perform independent fact-checking. Don't be gullible and easily trust what someone else says to be accurate - myself included. Even if the other person has no ill intent, s/he is probably acting on bad information themselves and is just relaying it to you. Sure, it takes a bit more effort but being on your toes intellectually goes a long way in developing critical thought.

Nelson Mandela: what do you know about him? I'm sure you heard that he ended apartheid (the racist white-ruled regime) in South Africa. I'm sure you heard that everybody loves him. I mean EVERYBODY. He's revered like the second coming of Christ, but actually more so, since not only Christians love him. Obama loves him, Putin loves him, the Pope loves him, even Gaddafi loved him. Hell, you probably love him. You may even think I'm a tasteless prick because of the title. But what else do you know about him?

Why do you love him? After all, you likely don't know all that much about him. If you are one of the people who knows a lot about Nelson Mandela and you still love him profoundly - my apologies. However, I don't think that applies to most that do. Just admit it. You love him because everyone loves him. You love him because you were told to love him by the media. You love him because it feels good to believe that someone can be a genuinely good, and just, leader worthy of respect and reverence.  

You know what else feels good? Doing drugs, getting drunk, eating junk food, having unprotected sex, etc. Do realize, though, that doing some of these things comes with very undesirable consequences. There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that the price paid for choosing to believe and revere charismatic leaders without criticism has been the death of HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS throughout history. Enjoy responsibly. 

Nelson Mandela founded the “Spear of the Nation”, which was the violent wing of the ANC party. He was in charge, when this organization unleashed terror on mostly civilians. A few excerpts follow.

In the Amanzimtoti bomb on the Natal South Coast in 1985, five civilians were killed and 40 were injured when MK cadre Andrew Sibusiso Zondo detonated an explosive in a rubbish bin at a shopping centre killing five people, including three children, shortly before Christmas.

Orders from whom? Your favorite guy, of course.

A bomb was detonated in a bar on the Durban beach-front in 1986, killing three civilians and injuring 69. Robert McBride received the death penalty for this bombing which became known as the "Magoo's Bar bombing". Although the subsequent Truth and Reconciliation Committee called the bombing a "gross violation of human rights", McBride received amnesty and became a senior police officer.

You've got to love the irony in the naming of various government programs and such. Sounds like lies and coverup to me.

The bombing campaign continued with attacks on a series of soft targets, including a bank in Roodepoort in 1988, in which four civilians were killed and 18 injured. Also in 1988, in a bomb detonation outside a magistrate's court killed three. At the Ellis Park rugby stadium in Johannesburg, a car bomb killed two and injured 37 civilians.

Yes, soft targets. Mandela decided to target civilians instead of the military or the police.

From 1985 to 1987, there also was a campaign to place anti-tank mines in rural roads in what was then the Northern Transvaal. This tactic was abandoned due to the high rate of civilian casualties—especially amongst black labourers.

ORLY?

The TRC found that torture was "routine" and was official policy – as were executions "without due process" at ANC detention camps particularly in the period of 1979–1989.

That's OK, because the torturers all got amnesty later. Nelson Mandela calls that reconciliation.

Yes, I am being purposely cynical. Hopefully you recognize that this man was not without fault, and definitely not a saint.