Candles in the Night
As we were driving the last leg of our “Looking for Hope” road trip, Bob turned to me and said, “You haven’t found much to hope for on this journey, have you?” What could I say? I desperately wanted to find hope for the future. And there have been moments when I said to myself, “This is a reason for hope.” There have been unique places and individuals that inspired me, and I wrote about them. But if I am to be honest with myself, I have seen more to be discouraged about than encouraged. I do not belittle the efforts that I have seen to change the direction our country and the world is headed. These are the candles in the night. They shine oh so brightly. But do we have time for those candles to ignite the wildfire needed for change?
Too often I see passive acceptance of what I consider unacceptable. A failure to connect the dots, to see the forest for the trees. Well-meaning people who do not think. It is not only the leaders who have failed us – we, the people have failed – and we have been given the government and conditions that we deserve. As long as we continue to believe that our security is worth any price (loss of constitutional rights, moral high ground, world respect, and the lives of millions), that future technology will solve our energy needs and climate change, that being anti-war is aiding our enemies and that protest and dissent is unpatriotic. As long as we believe that we must continue our excessive consumption in order to keep America’s economy strong, that it is our place in the world to spread freedom and democracy (actually capitalism) and Christianity, and the public gives more importance to entertainment than to hard news and education. As long as Americans believe that maintaining the American life-style is more important than saving the world from war and environmental degradation. As long as those beliefs are held, and the American culture continues to be self-absorbed and self-important, I have no hope that there is enough courage or outrage to change the direction of the stampede that is now headed over the cliff’s edge. My only hope is that after the Empire falls (whether it be economic, anarchy, world war, pandemic, or climate change disasters), that there will be enough candles left in the night to pick up the pieces and rebuild a saner world. I’m afraid this one is too far gone.
Does that mean I have given up? Raised the white flag of surrender? Say, “Oh well, there is nothing I can do about it?” Absolutely not! I will continue to be a grouchy old woman protesting loudly, a thorn in the side of apathy and blind denial. And I will continue to look for all those candles in the night, support them, and add my own. The future of our planet is worth fighting for, and I will do so to the end of my days.
I am by no means alone in my skepticism and cynical view of America. This morning on the Common Dreams website I read an article written by Beth Quinn called, STUNNED BY LACK OF OUTRAGE, NOT OUTRAGEOUS ACTS. “I am stunned by all that is left of America: Americans,” she says. Stunned by the absence of outrage. By days end there were 104 comments posted to her article, which I guess says something about the frustration that people are experiencing. Most just said, “Tell us what to do.” Perhaps that is where we start.
... P. L. Morningstar
Too often I see passive acceptance of what I consider unacceptable. A failure to connect the dots, to see the forest for the trees. Well-meaning people who do not think. It is not only the leaders who have failed us – we, the people have failed – and we have been given the government and conditions that we deserve. As long as we continue to believe that our security is worth any price (loss of constitutional rights, moral high ground, world respect, and the lives of millions), that future technology will solve our energy needs and climate change, that being anti-war is aiding our enemies and that protest and dissent is unpatriotic. As long as we believe that we must continue our excessive consumption in order to keep America’s economy strong, that it is our place in the world to spread freedom and democracy (actually capitalism) and Christianity, and the public gives more importance to entertainment than to hard news and education. As long as Americans believe that maintaining the American life-style is more important than saving the world from war and environmental degradation. As long as those beliefs are held, and the American culture continues to be self-absorbed and self-important, I have no hope that there is enough courage or outrage to change the direction of the stampede that is now headed over the cliff’s edge. My only hope is that after the Empire falls (whether it be economic, anarchy, world war, pandemic, or climate change disasters), that there will be enough candles left in the night to pick up the pieces and rebuild a saner world. I’m afraid this one is too far gone.
Does that mean I have given up? Raised the white flag of surrender? Say, “Oh well, there is nothing I can do about it?” Absolutely not! I will continue to be a grouchy old woman protesting loudly, a thorn in the side of apathy and blind denial. And I will continue to look for all those candles in the night, support them, and add my own. The future of our planet is worth fighting for, and I will do so to the end of my days.
I am by no means alone in my skepticism and cynical view of America. This morning on the Common Dreams website I read an article written by Beth Quinn called, STUNNED BY LACK OF OUTRAGE, NOT OUTRAGEOUS ACTS. “I am stunned by all that is left of America: Americans,” she says. Stunned by the absence of outrage. By days end there were 104 comments posted to her article, which I guess says something about the frustration that people are experiencing. Most just said, “Tell us what to do.” Perhaps that is where we start.
... P. L. Morningstar
posted by Looking for Hope | 3:40 PM
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