Vigilance is exhausting...
Believe me, the temptation to give the current administration enough rope to hang themselves is great. After all, if there is anything that I know about the masses, it's that they are reactionary simps (boy, that'll win me an election, eh?!?)
Everything will eventually make a dramatic swing back the other way. I have two problems with this, however. The first is that I have a young son. I don't want his formative years (junior and senior high) to be marked by a collective movement towards restricted rights and unconstitutional violations of privacy. I don't want him to bear witness to any more extinction of species or destruction of nature, let alone be forced to filter every drop of water or breathe through a mask.
The second problem I have with this inevitable swing of the pendulum is two-fold. First, it will take too long. I know, that doesn't denote an abundance of wisdom, but I am human after all. I want to see us reclaim our progressive and loving ideologies now, not after I'm dead. I don't want us to have to rollerskate uphill for decades trying to pull ourselves back out of the 16th century draconian state into which we're headed before we can start to rebuild.
Second, the swing will undoubtedly be reactionary and extreme. This is where we lack wisdom, folks. Rigid polarization is not healthy for a country, a society or a species. We can't afford to reserve our energies until conditions have become unbearable, we have to act, not react. We cannot afford to take license when our liberties are under threat (consult Mortimer Adler's Six Great Ideas for an explanation of these terms.)
The middle way is not merely a buddhist concept, it is a universal path that, when followed, leads to the peaceful appreciation of life that I think we all seek.
Right, so with that said, check out this article and this article to see what sparked this post.
Everything will eventually make a dramatic swing back the other way. I have two problems with this, however. The first is that I have a young son. I don't want his formative years (junior and senior high) to be marked by a collective movement towards restricted rights and unconstitutional violations of privacy. I don't want him to bear witness to any more extinction of species or destruction of nature, let alone be forced to filter every drop of water or breathe through a mask.
The second problem I have with this inevitable swing of the pendulum is two-fold. First, it will take too long. I know, that doesn't denote an abundance of wisdom, but I am human after all. I want to see us reclaim our progressive and loving ideologies now, not after I'm dead. I don't want us to have to rollerskate uphill for decades trying to pull ourselves back out of the 16th century draconian state into which we're headed before we can start to rebuild.
Second, the swing will undoubtedly be reactionary and extreme. This is where we lack wisdom, folks. Rigid polarization is not healthy for a country, a society or a species. We can't afford to reserve our energies until conditions have become unbearable, we have to act, not react. We cannot afford to take license when our liberties are under threat (consult Mortimer Adler's Six Great Ideas for an explanation of these terms.)
The middle way is not merely a buddhist concept, it is a universal path that, when followed, leads to the peaceful appreciation of life that I think we all seek.
Right, so with that said, check out this article and this article to see what sparked this post.
posted by Lost Tortoise | 08:12
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