The other night Nancy and I watched the documentary The Singing Revolution. If you have a chance to get a copy, it is well worth your time. The documentary chronicles Estonia’s path to liberation from the Soviet Union, and shows the crucial role that music played in that liberation.
There were a number of takeaway points from the documentary, but given that we are just two days away from Christmas, I wanted to mention one of them here. During the time of the Soviet occupation there, putting up a Christmas tree in your home was a subversive act, and would be treated as such. For those who have faith to see what is going on, it still is a subversive act.
I don’t need to be reminded of this very often, but the film reminded me yet again how much I hate the collectivist Hive, and how much I hate the fuzzy obfuscations of those who want to escape their duty to their neighbor by trumpeting our (read, your) obligations to the whole. The glorious sight of thirty thousand Estonians on one stage, singing, illustrates the true nature of a genuine corporate identity, and puts to shame those who want to extract your love from you at the point of a gun. Part of your “contribution” helps keep their gulags funded, as an inspiration to those who are not as in love with their idea of the collective good as they are.
Because of some grim archival footage at the beginning of the documentary, parents might want to view it before letting younger children watch.