The depths

Things look very unstable globally. Certainly this is the most turmoil I have seen in my lifetime as I benefitted from a post-war boom which ended up taking us into the early 21st century. Sure we had our hiccups but nothing like this.

What we have now is major social and economic upheaval which is forcing us to re-examine our priorities. As the old nuclear model of the family and reliable economic structures are being fragmented we are seeing panic from right wing political forces who depended on cultural predictability. When the right is panicky they get aggressive especially when their avarice is perturbed and the poor doth protest too much.

I knew when I was younger that stupidity was naturally baked in to the human equation but I was wrong about how prevalent it is. Suddenly I was seeing statements and ideas that challenged my ability to trust human nature and I saw morons everywhere.

Social media has taught us that public shame is really just a quaint notion and people readily trumpet their stupidity because there are legions of their followers out there who cannot recognize it. Thus we now get stupid political figures who just have to sound like the average Joe or Jane and breathe life into the hatred that ignorance seems to breed in some people.

This November, a good chunk of America will vote for a malevolent imbecile.

Were he alive today I am uncertain of whether my father would simply look at me and say "I warned you" or shake his head in disbelief at the depths that we were yet to attain.