“The Sky Is Falling, The Sky is Falling.” Those were the words of Chicken Little, also known as Henny Penny, in a children’s folk tale to illustrate a groundless or absurd conviction that some catastrophic consequence is imminent or underway. The moral of the story is one shouldn’t jump to assumptions without getting the real story and blindly following any person. Or chicken. I suppose we’ve forgotten all that since we read, or had read to us, the story as children.
I’ve been in a mood for a while, not every moment, but often enough. I can blame Covid and the constant search for purpose in retirement other than catching fish, which isn’t a bad goal in the least.
But I’ll add something to voice a concern that’s been there since Newt Gingrich shut down the government, Fox News came into the picture and The New York Times went from “all the news that’s fit to print” to human-interest stories of a politically correct bent and utilizing large irrelevant photos to take up space that once contained real news. In short I’m talking about the breakdown of our sources of intelligence, our society, our country, allowing countries like China, Russia, North Korea, to salivate on the sidelines. I’m talking about the sort of global leadership that permits a Covid-infected Donald Trump to go to a debate, Boris Johnson to cynically violate his own rules, and Joe Biden’s feckless administration that gives us Afghanistan, the Build Back Better effort, and OMG what will the next set of elections produce.
The GOP doesn’t get off the hook (fishing metaphor) and indeed is more responsible for the civil unrest this all leads to. Their rejection of the last election’s legitimacy, the retelling of January 6, their unwillingness to cooperate on anything speaks to a desire to force the breakdown of our political to system to….
To what? To reject any election result people don’t like. To use the pandemic to hit the economy rather than encourage the obvious mitigations (masks, vaccines) so the country deteriorates, and they sweep in by blaming others. To encourage more violent protests from both extremes and then have Fox say it was Antifa and liberal tolerance of criminals and liberals saying it’s all about inequity. Yes to all that and more.
Okay, so I’ve not said anything insightful. Where my fear comes from is what’s next? Books are being written about a new civil war, both sides talk of increased domestic violence, and our very real enemies both foreign and domestic wringing their hands in anticipation. I don’t know what the future holds. I can’t imagine a real civil war. I can’t imagine the US devolving into two or more countries. I can imagine us sitting by when China invades Taiwan, Russian moves into Ukraine, and the result being an isolationism we’ve not seen since the 20s and 30s.
It’s not good for the stock market.
That’s not meant to be funny. I think the fact I even said that reflects the selfish attitude of us all but especially our leaders – political and economic – who see the rising stock market as a proxy for societal good as opposed to the bitterness and anger it creates for the increasing demographic of the have-nots while the media puts gazillionaires on pedestals if not into the stratosphere. I mean, my God, is there anyone out there in a position of authority to say with inflation at 7% maybe interest rates shouldn’t 1.72%? Time was when interest rates were ABOVE the level of inflation. Think of retirees seeking risk-averse returns. Is it any wonder the average age of a Fox watcher is way over 60? PS they also are more likely to vote compared to 1) younger people, 2) people of color, 3) liberal. Think about it.
I’ll cite a Stephen Wright joke; They tell you to put your two cents in and then give you a penny for your thoughts. Someone’s making a penny.
Someone is and it’s not good for the country and is what’s allowed both political extremes to milk the dismay and get us to divide. We’ll see where the conquer bit comes out, but I’ll say that from my perspective the right wing is more unified than the left which spouts its divisive identify politics and ludicrous mea culpas that puts moderates on edge and ultimately perhaps on the sidelines. Silly though it is for the Women’s March organization to apologize for raising $14.92 per donor in November (because 1492 is an offensive number coinciding with Columbus coming to America) it kind of takes away from the issues don’t you think? I wonder what they’d say if they raised $16.20 in December?
And how are Jews supposed to feel when a Philadelphia street fair’s organizers booted an Israeli vendor from the event. This was last July. The event, FYI, Eat Up the Borders, purports to back “small, family, or immigrant owned businesses.” Yeah, right.
In Germany in the 1930s, the Nazis only ever had one-third of popular support. Alas, the remaining 2/3s was divided between moderates, socialists, communists, Christian conservatives and the like allowing the plurality to step in. I’m reminded of that every day when I read the NYT or hear the arguments about Critical Race Theory. The road to hell is paved and all that.
I conclude with no conclusion. What I would like to offer is a plan or hope. The latter isn’t there because I don’t see much hope beyond it’s all rhetoric and we’ll just go into a period – decades – where a conservative agenda wins out, not always bad, but that each state follows its agenda and we don’t see open-carry folks walking through Times Square. That’s the best I hope for. That, and having a reasonably decent candidate for President in both parties or a new party of moral people whom I trust if not agree with.
Oh, I also think the best way to ‘equity’ in all its forms is to teach science, technology, engineering and math in schools along with reading and writing. And factual history.
But those aside, what then? A compound in the country is something I think about with qualified friends – an MD, for instance, a farmer, hunter, massage therapist. Buying gold? Maybe it’s a case of hunkering down making these last two years a dress rehearsal for me being the Good German and just closing my eyes. I figure I’m old enough, wealthy enough, that I’ll be okay in terms of food and health care. That’s comfort and not all that cold, but what a sorry state to be in where I think that way.
I don’t know but am open to ideas. And that compound.