Y2k to 2010

I wanted to take some time early in this New Year, new decade and still fairly new century to reflect on where we are, where we’ve come since Y2k, and where I think we are headed as a nation and a global community. The 21st century no doubt will be marked by innovative, technological, political and social change not only on the local and national level but across the globe. As we venture further into this decade we will notice an increased level of interconnectedness with all of the Earth’s inhabitants to the point that the price of tea in China will most certainly be relevant to what the price of sugar is in Iowa. We’re barley 10 years in to the 21st century and we’ve had numerous first time occurrences, we’ve reached myriad millstones and witnessed scores of unexpected twists and turns that at varying times during the past decade held captive the collective attention span of the entire globe on a single phenomenon or phenomenal event. We witnessed at the turn of the century a president literally steal an election, the very next year we got attacked on our own soil and the World Trade Center disappeared before our lying eyes. The president that stole the election within two years started two wars none of which were against a Government that ordered the attack. We saw our economy spiral into recession and we narrowly averted a repeat of the 1930’s great depression. People were not only losing their homes in record numbers they were losing their banks as record banks and financial institutions went under along with all the underwater homes.




We witnessed in the Nation’s capitol and her surrounding suburbs a two man murder spree with long range rifles. Can you imagine ducking and hiding under your car while pumping gas because you’re afraid of random sniper fire? I can because I saw it done. I even did it myself a few times. The last decade also saw death and destruction not brought on by man. We witnessed an American city drown during Hurricane Katrina. While the incident itself was a natural disaster the response to it OR lack thereof a response was a manmade disaster and it typified the level of leadership we had at the time. We witnessed on a global scale disasters of biblical proportion with the Tsunami in south East Asia and an earth quake in China. All told almost half a million people perished in those two incidents alone. This is in a decade replete with natural disasters. Our thoughts and prayers are with the people of Haiti as we as they struggle with the greatest natural disaster of that country’s history and easily the greatest natural disaster of this new decade and we are only 2 months in.

Don’t get me wrong the decade was far from all doom and gloom and my overall belief and understanding is that we as a people are headed for a kinder more peaceful union and global community but I’d be lying if I said we will get there devoid of struggle. The last decade also saw us for the first time elect a black man as president and the first such progressive since JFK. While his politics are a stark departure from the last guy that manipulated his way into office there is growing resentment of him by some in this country for not continuing the John Wayne style of governance. Even though it’s a relatively small group of people myopically opposed to progression it’s a very loud and well financed group that in all honesty would rather the country to go back 60 years to 1950 than fully emerge itself into the 21st century. Money and repetition have a strange affect on how history is perceived.

It’s for that very reason that we as American people need to remain vigilant about what’s going on today as well as know the truth about what happened yesterday. If you don’t know the past you don’t know the present and if you’re unconscious of the present tense there is no way that you can accurately predict what’s in store for the future. Case and point Ronald Reagan. I was 7 when he took office and about 15 when he left. Had not the 1980’s been indelibly inscribed in my memory I would have thought that Ronald Reagan was the greatest man since Ghandi based on how people today recall him. His presidency by all accounts was a failure and widely acknowledged as such by even the folks in his party. The last decade saw his death and I swear along with burying that old bastard folks seemed to have buried their memory of the 80’s and all concepts of cumulative effects. You’d never think that he came in office with there being a 700billion deficit and left office with it at 3 trillion. Or the fact that he held the receipts for the weapons of mass destruction that quote unquote made Iraq such a grave national security threat. Or that his administration was responsible for initially arming and emboldening Osama Bin Laden to thwart the Soviet influence in Afghanistan during the cold war. Now think about that for a minute. He had the CIA arm and train Osama Bin Laden on how to be a terrorist. And he sold WMD’s to Iraq. How’s that for America’s favorite president and How do those facts about Ronald Wilson Reagan comport with the image of him today.

They are already trying to re-make the Bush/Cheney 8 year disaster and we have not even recovered from it yet. How’s that for gall? They will tell you that he kept them safe for 8 years. REALLY?? How ambiguous of an answer can that be? Think about that for a second. HE kept US safe. How many people lost their homes, thier jobs and life savings under him? How many people fell into poverty from 2000 to 2008? George Bush is not what I would call a safety net. As it relates to terrorism saying that he kept us safe for 8 year is sort of like saying because you took Flintstones vitamins since you were six you did not get cancer. Really it is, and anyone that uses that argument do please tell them that they are a douche bag

Speaking of doucehbags our new president being the progressive that he is precipitated another movement that’s gained a lot of steam called the Tea Bag Party. Now these geniuses are what you call the quintessential douche bags. They will call Obama a socialist and facist in the same breath even though the two ideologies are on the opposite end of the geo political spectrum. That’s like telling someone to go right and left at the same time. They have mastered the art of repetitious drivel. It’s what I call when you hear and say something enough times no matter how illogical or ridiculous it sounds it becomes truth, to the idiot parroting the false statements and any one unfortunate enough to share their menial IQ. An example would be your typical FOX News analyst

They have no concept of cause and effect. They will totally ignore the cause and blame the affect on anyone and anything that strengthens their already struggling argument. Depending on who it is you could tell them the sky is green and sure as hell they would pull out their guns and tell you they will fight and die for their green sky. Seriously, If Sarah Palin told them that we did not start paying income Tax until January 20 2009 I swear to you these folks will all but erase the memory of ever filling out a W2 prior to Obama becoming president. And recognize him as the author of income tax legislation

Speaking of Sarah Palin boy did she take us all by storm just before the turn of the decade. While I agree with most normal Americans that she’s an idiot and unqualified to be the president’s press secretary let alone the president, I will say this, her meteoric rise to political prominence is an overall good thing and a great American story. She gives slackers and regular Joes around the world hope that it’s never too late to get your act together and be something when they finally decide to grow up. I would say a person that took 7 years and 5 schools to get a 4 year degree in journalism no less qualifies as slacker at least as far as a presidential hopeful go. Even becoming the leader of a major political party is a pretty great feat from someone out of slacker nation (regardless of the fact the party is full of Neanderthals). So while I laugh at her and poke fun at her silly antics I secretly admire how far she’s come. I watched her debut as a FOX News analyst and there’s never been a job more qualified for her skill set. What she lacks in journalistic integrity she more than compensates with comic relief. She’s even better after Rachel Maddow and Jon Stewart opine her footage.

All in all the next ten years will prove to be as aw-inspiring as the last ten were. We will see more change, monumental achievement, more pain, more struggle, more class war fare and more of the political pendulum swinging right and left but so long as the majority of us remain conscious, vigilant and spiritually grounded the best of our yesterdays will continue to be the worst of our tomorrow’s. There is a Buddhist term called Kosen Rufu in a nutshell it’s defined as the overarching goal of achieving world peace and human happiness. Whether your Christian, Muslim, Jewish or atheist, whether you live in Nashville Tennessee or Soweto S. Africa. World peace and human happiness is a common goal of all people from all walks of life and for the most part if enough of us make it a priority to at least think on such humanistic goals world peace and the absence of war will come that much closer to fruition.

Lets make it a good one!