Nevertheless, Lincoln is so determined to see the amendment pass before the war ends that he resorts to corruption and deception. He enlists a group of unscrupulous patronage peddlers to promise political jobs and appointments to lame-duck Democrats if they will promise to vote for the amendment. They add piles of cash to sweeten the deals, and the votes start piling up too. The group is headed by a bilko artist with the unlikely name of "Bilbo" (James Spader). All of their scenes are accompanied by comical music to make us laugh at their outrageously funny and effective techniques. Aren't they clever as they connive to buy votes?
In addition to buying votes for his amendment, Lincoln also resorts to outright lying. When Jefferson Davis sends emissaries to discuss a negotiated peace while the amendment is coming to a vote, Lincoln knows that some of his "negotiated support" is likely to change, and the amendment is likely to fail. Consequently, he sends a letter denying any knowledge of the peace delegation from Richmond, even though this is clearly a lie. He sends this note with a flourish and a chuckle — and the audience in my theater cheered. I was disheartened that they didn't feel the same shame I felt when I saw a president of the United States deliberately lie to get his way. But I wasn't surprised. It's what we expect today
Mahabharata is a story which depicts our real life - our struggle, our balance between right and wrong, easy and difficult, dharma and adharma. The character of Karna teaches us a very important aspect of life: you maybe a great devotee, a skilful warrior, a selfless friend, but in the end what matters is how you utilize these qualities - for the society or against the society.
Let me give some examples.
Consider Lord Voldemort from Harry Potter
After all, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named did great things — terrible, yes, but great - Ollivander
I knew that Voldemort's knowledge of magic is perhaps more extensive than any wizard alive. I knew that even my most complex and powerful protective spells and charms were unlikely to be invincible if he ever returned to full power. - Albus Dumbledore
Lord Voldemort seems like modern-day Karna as far as his skills are concerned - powerful, possessed invaluable weapons which no other person had, very smart and intelligent and so on.
Now take example of Ravana from Ramayana:
A great devotee of Lord Shiva, very religious, knower of all Vedas and scriptures, conqueror of Heaven and Earth with victories over all devatas and so on.
Both of these were superheroes, almost immortals, with no match. But in the end, both were doomed, killed by the virtue of their own misdeeds. However great their achievements were, we still consider them "villains".
Karna's story is similar. While Voldemort comes no where near to Karna when positive qualities are concerned, and Ravan probably comes only close enough, it basically boils down to this simple thing - if we were to draw a line between good and evil, Karna would fall in the evil category. It is actions that determine who you are and the simplest fact that he supported Kauravas, which were fighting against dharma, is sufficient to classify him as such.
It's not that Pandavas were any better as far as qualities go - they also lied, cheated, had greed, were selfish, had inclination towards materialistic world and kingdom, but they utilized their energy to make sure that victory goes to truth and righteousness - the pillars of dharma. And this made all the difference.
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