the offensiveness
may be a distraction from
the destructiveness
Adapted from the Guardian Opinion piece, The United States is destroying itself by Rebecca Solnit which has the slug line, The daily news can’t adequately convey the administration’s sabotaging of our government, economy, alliances and environment.
Ms. Solnit writes:
The United States is being murdered, and it’s an inside job. Every department, every branch, every bureau and function of the federal government is being fatally corrupted or altogether dismantled or disabled. All this is common knowledge, but because it dribbles out in news stories about this specific incident or department, the reports never adequately describe an administration sabotaging the functioning of the federal government and also trashing the global economy, international alliances and relationships, and the national and global environment in ways that will have downstream consequences for decades and perhaps, especially when it comes to climate, centuries.
But the offensiveness may be a distraction from the destructiveness. A whole sector of mainstream media now functions as spirit mediums attempting to interpret Trump’s actions to try to fit them into the context of competent leadership and coherent and consistent agendas. If there was a coherent agenda, it would be a destructive one, a malevolent one. The newly popular slogan “the purpose of a system is what it does” is useful here, because what this system does is weaken, damage, corrupt and harm. The idea that there’s a coherent agenda driven by Vladimir Putin works in the sense that most of what Trump has done is good for the ageing Russian dictator while also bad for the US.
But the offensiveness may be a distraction from the destructiveness.
We are seeing without seeing.
Has the Titanic has hit the iceberg with no one seemingly understanding that the ship is filling with water?
My wife and I got to talking the other day.
I had another contact from the Medicare folks to let me know I was past retirement age and it was time for retirement.
All fine and good but I cannot afford to retire.
No real problem as I am in good health and I have good job.
Still there are those in our circle who have managed their lives so they can retire.
They managed a career with a single employer and made contributions to their funds and navigated the iceberg of 2009 successfully.
And to those folks, I take my hat off and say good for you!
I do feel good that the ‘American Dream’ can still work!
Then I read this article by Ms. Solnit.
As much as my friends have a plan, their plan depends on one thing.
The ongoing financial and political success of the United States of America.
5, 10, 15 or 30 years years ago, that worked.
I mean who among us could imagine us without the USA?
Today we read headlines that say, The United States is destroying itself.
Today we read stories that say, the offensiveness may be a distraction from the destructiveness.
And I have to ask, who saw 2009 coming?
Who say 1929 coming?
And I am reminded of Psalm 146.
Do not put your trust in princes,
in human beings, who cannot save.
When their spirit departs, they return to the ground;
on that very day their plans come to nothing.
Blessed are those whose help is the God of Jacob,
whose hope is in the Lord their God.
I don’t know what the future holds for the USA.
Hope we come out OK but there is no going back to where we were.
I don’t have much of a 401k.
I don’t own anything of value.
My hope is in the Lord our God.
In the long run, I feel my retirement is pretty secure.
No Haiku For You 