By Rick Stanton
I had to return early from my self-imposed sabbatical after listening to all the hatred being spewed in virtually every form of media the last couple of weeks.
Not that it hasn’t been going on longer than that. It just seems like the heat got turned up lately, with, “Go back to where you came from” leading the way.
Far-right nationalism is rampant in way too many countries… Saber-rattling in Iran causes one to worry about yet another unwarranted Middle Eastern war… The Russians are meddling—again… Trade wars are hurting everyone, especially our farmers…
The Mueller grilling confirmed there was, in fact, obstruction of justice at the very least, and the subject continues to cloud way too many other matters.
Then there’s the whole climate change thing. Famine? Drought? Rampant wildfires? Devastating weather like never before? Nah. Fake news. Total hoax.
And if you know someone on the East coast, ask them how they feel about floods turning into a killer heatwave in the span of just two weeks.
I’m sure I’m leaving out a lot of other developments that unnerve all of us, but good grief, Planet Earth sure seems to need a Summer vacation. And a heavy dose of “cool it already!”
Common sense and civility have given way to violent rhetoric, confrontation and universal hatred.
Any of us old enough to remember the Los Angeles riots of 1992 undoubtedly recall the words from Rodney King, a man nearly beaten to death by police, who said, “Can’t we all just get along?”
I’m deeply troubled by the current “temperature”—not only here, but just about everywhere in the world. I’m also concerned that this is leading us to a tipping point (if we aren’t already there) that doesn’t bode well for us Earthlings.
The article I’ve linked has a wonderful message of what our country was all about not that long ago—differences and all.
America is an idea, not a geography lesson. We all can begin by taking baby steps, like being kinder to people, including people we don’t know or don’t look like us.
BE NICE! I began doing my part by dragging my neighbor’s garbage cans back from the street today. Let it be noted that my first random act of kindness occurred on July 25, 2019—and will be repeated in some form every day going forward.
Final note: The article linked below also celebrates the small agency—the place where great creative is still more important than gluttonous profitability.