I had a strange thought last night: what if the nuclear war Jones predicted had actually come to pass before his cult's mass murder/suicide in November 1978? He would have seemed a prophet to his followers, and maybe even to many Guyanese. And with his supply of drugs cut off, he might have even regained enough lucidity to lead an expansion from the Jonestown Peoples' Temple compound, and seize control of the entire country. I imagine there would be tremendous confusion in Guyana, even more than the GDF could manage, as in much of the Third World, even though it wouldn't have been bombed in the war. A charismatic demagogue like Jones, already well-regarded by many leftist Guyanese, could have presented himself as a savior, come to bring order out of chaos. In times of terror, as we all know, many people become like sheep, eager to surrender their freedom to any strong leader who will tell them what to do.
Jones did enough evil with just a small community of nine hundred and fifty under his thumb. Imagine what he could have acheived, had he risen to rule an entire nation. He was pretty ruthless, and intolerant of any dissent.
Jones did enough evil with just a small community of nine hundred and fifty under his thumb. Imagine what he could have acheived, had he risen to rule an entire nation. He was pretty ruthless, and intolerant of any dissent.