Alligators 'n Roadkill

Alligators 'n Roadkill
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Friday, December 20, 2019

Have we finally elected nothing but "Hollow Men?"

I read a lot of Science Fiction way back in my teen years, up into my adult years.  A good bit of what I read dealt with possible scenarios for the "End Of The World As We Know It."  The more horrible stories dealt with nuclear holocaust, but some of the more grisly, and indeed more dark speculation found in the many stories did deal with - essentially - overpopulation, and both the affects and the effects this might have on this once beautiful planet.

And, of course, books like "Brave New World" and "1984" also presented less than bright futures for mankind.

Being basically an optimist, though, I usually dismissed the ideas from most of this genre in favor of the theme of man finally leaving planet earth, colonizing the known solar system, and then, moving outward to conquer the universe.  I was convinced, especially after we put men on the moon in 1969, that this was the more likely future for humankind.

Now, I am an old man, and I look at the world around me, and it sure looks like 1969 was our high point, and we have done nothing since then.  We are mired in wars all over the world, the major products of the once mighty U. S. A. are weapons of war, and we have even exported war itself, as we have Americans actively engaged in combat situations in too many places around the world today.

Meanwhile, it took a 14 year old girl, with Asperger's Syndrome, to bring to the attention of most of the world the reality that we are rapidly destroying our world!  Our over reliance on fossil fuels has - and continues to have - a most deleterious effect on our environment.  We were warned about this many years ago, and all attempts to do something positive about this have been squelched by big business.

Our nation, once a leader in efforts to save the planet, has opted out of all of those efforts under the current, corrupt administration.  Somehow, Congress has become powerless to do anything at all, and deliberately evidences no sign of any effort to help the disastrous situation.  Well, maybe that is not completely accurate.  The House of Representatives shows a willingness to help, but all legislation that might be helpful to the people of the country is blocked by a truly horrid toad of a man in the Senate.

And, this brings us to my question:  Have we finally elected nothing but "Hollow Men?"
Yes, that is a reference to a once famous poem by one T. S. Eliot.  And, yes, I think these horrible lifelong politicians, who have held their various offices for far too long, are literally dead inside.  They have no heart.  They have no compassion.  They have no interest in preserving this world for future generations.  Their only God appears to be money, and they devote their strongest resources to achieving more and more of it, at the expense of their constituents.  And, finally, due to their overall neglect, their utter failure to do their jobs, indeed to their greed, we are facing a global crisis the likes of which has never been more than imagined.  So, that means, that the below quoted ending from that T. S. Eliot poem may well be the final truth:

This is the way the world ends
This is the way the world ends
This is the way the world ends
Not with a bang but a whimper
.

(T. S. Eliot/"The Hollow Men" 1925)

Tuesday, December 17, 2019

Here's part of my Two Cents worth.

After all these years of GOP obstructionism (remember, they met as a group and decided to oppose everything that came from our duly elected President, Mr. Obama, way back at his first inauguration), including Moscow Mitch's causing constipation of the Senate (wherein he has flat ignored almost all of the legislation passed by the House of Representatives), I am not optimistic about the chances of Impeachment succeeding at this time.

That said, however, I still feel very strongly that this is the right move, if for no other reason than to send the clear message to them, and to the American people, that we still have some politicians in this nation who are willing to put our best interests ahead of their political party's interests.

It is very unfortunate that voter apathy has led to this sorry pass, allowing the GOP to effectively control (which in their case always means obstruction of anything that might benefit normal people) the entire government of this once free nation.

Somehow, we must find ways to persuade more people to register and to actually vote, at every level, across the nation.  We must stop voting for republicans, and start voting for people who offer hope for all of us, instead of the very rich, who literally own most politicians today.

I could go on, but let's leave it here for now.  Whoever you are.  Wherever you are.  Please register and vote!