I generally try to avoid chatting about politics because it can lead to some very spicy conversations.
That being said, with the current global political crap storm going on, I find that I cannot help but way in.
This year that has brought us the continuing madness of a senseless conflict in the Ukraine that was orchestrated by the megalomaniac residing in the Kremlin. His obvious disregard for the human condition easily places his name along side some of history’s worst perpetrators of crimes against humanity.
I certainly am not claiming to know much about anything but would like to pose the first of a few rhetorical questions.
Why would NATO not simply expedite a membership of Ukraine?
We have all heard the warnings from the madman demanding the rest of the world to stay out of the conflict that he has started. These also included warnings to NATO about expanding their membership including the newest member, Finland. I am aware that this is a sensitive game of chess with very high stakes but do we really believe that this individual is so unstable that he would risk turning his country into a wasteland with his poorly veiled threats of escalating things to include the use of weapons of mass destruction? And if so, does that not pose a number of other questions that all have obvious answers ?
Has violence become the brand of the year? This has been made horribly evident by the 130 mass shootings across the United States in just the last four months. It has continued the search for a cause and a cure, fuelling the debate over mental health vs. gun ownership. The short answer on this debate is that not enough has been done on either front as politicians drink the kool-aid in the form of contributions from NRA and participate in the hostage negotiations for proper funding while voting down any meaningful bills that are proposed by their counterparts. In case it was too vague, the hostages are the American public.
Without question, mental health is a global issue that has just recently come out of the shadows allowing it to be discussed openly. A subject that used to be hidden away for fear of how people think or being shamed has now been recognized as a subject of necessity. I would dare to stay that there is not a single family on this planet that has not been touched by this subject in some degree. Perhaps you are not aware, or you do not want to believe it but somewhere, someone in your family could benefit from some form of therapy. As long as help is readily available, affordable and is stigma free, a little help once and a while is not only welcome, it is necessary.
If you have a population that does not have these services available, an increasingly tense living environment due to to any growing number of adversities blended with readily available firearms, you can expect that there will be some horrible consequences.
What can be done to correct it when opposing parties refuse to work together ? What is the solution when the politicians seem more interested in their own personal preservation than that of the constituents that afforded them their position ? What is the true cost of putting campaign contributions ahead of human lives ?
These questions are asked every day. Perhaps the phrasing is often less pointed, perhaps the perspective is not as harsh, depending what shade of glasses it is viewed through but the issues at hand are real and the cost has been human lives and untold levels of mental anguish for those loved ones that are left behind.
Generally, the short answer is that we look to our governments for guidance and protection from the larger issues that seem beyond one single person’s abilities. Our elected officials use to be our shining beacon of behavioural standards. We could look to them for examples of personal sacrifice, placing the masses before the individual.
Those days are long gone. The example that we now have has become a soup of misogynistic sexual predators, bullies, petty criminals, media hungry megalomaniacs and delusional lunatics fighting for their turn at the community fountain. With the exception of a few great politicians that continually swim upstream against a sometimes overwhelming currant, I find it harder to believe what I’m being told about serious geopolitical issues.
We can research issues and concerns on our own but even the national news networks seem to have polarizing view points on almost every subject. There are a couple of networks that have moved from genuine news networks to more of an entertainment network, telling the viewers whatever it takes to keep them locked in.
I unfortunately see storm clouds on the horizon and rain coats and umbrellas are in short supply. The global trend setters, particularly our neighbours to the south have seemingly set the trend to rescind some civil liberties like the ability for women to be in control of their own bodies, the ability for the young to learn the true history and all of the missteps within (in hope that they not be repeated). To tell the people that they have right to free speech but ban select literature seems to be either the premise of a great science fiction story or the beginnings of a dizzying spiral that would likely take generations to correct.
Like a painting exposed to the elements, every year that passes allows the detail and the emotion that may have been the original intent of the artist(s) to fade from view unless protected by the generations that follow. This is the unfortunate case with “selective” history.
If we make a conscious effort to teach the new generations the whole truth, regardless of how ugly it may be, it may surprise everyone how much positivity may come from it.
The notion that it will terrorize the young minds and place blame and guilt on innocents perhaps is a bit of a stretch. What it will definitely do is create some heated, inspirational conversations and plenty of questions. An open dialogue and inspired efforts to ensure that we do not repeat the errors, atrocities and complacencies of our forefathers.
Perhaps it will help them recognize that maniac in wolf’s clothing before they end up with a criminal, seething with dangerous intent, running our countries. Perhaps it will help them understand the dangers in “cancel cultures” that try to erase people and events simply based on the opinions of a minority or misguided individual. It is like they are trying to cover an old red wine stain on a white carpet.
It can’t really be done. It all happened so embrace it, examine it and work on a course correction to ensure that we do not find ourselves repeating the same mistakes as those before us.