Lessons Learned

“Closed loop” organizational systems are enabling the rise of dictatorship and the cult of populism around the world. I tend to fixate on the vanishing of participatory democracy in the United States, the country of my birth, but all over the planet the voice of the people is being denied.

The recent reveal of “Lessons Learned” documents illustrating expensive and pervasive failures of the US military actions in Afghanistan is not a singular expose’. It’s common practice for military commands and duty sections to maintain a log of unique situational learning and site specific practices. The lack of a feedback loop and the need to “cover your ass” and keep local failures a secret is the real problem. There is no covert sense, no plot to conceal, just the human tendency to keep ones dirty laundry behind closed doors.

The enemy of democracy is darkness. The failure to shine our light on sad realities keeps them hidden and thus we are handcuffed, unable to take corrective action. In our current system the heart of the humanist manifests as a permanent cry for help, a repetitive loop where atrocities are unearthed after the fact, pointed to with anguish and frustration, and the juggernaut rolls on with no perceptible change for good. But the answer is not greater sacrifice, as it’s not practical or wise to leave one’s home and family to throw your body on “the gears and levers of the machine.” Instead, we need to rethink and redesign our organizational structures to perform in a transparent fashion where reporting observational truth is not a sin, because we all share the ultimate goal of prevention and improvement.

The best job I ever had was working in a profit-sharing environment. Because we all were equally vested in the success of the company, every office had an open door, we could question any policy or procedure. The only constraint was our own sense of time, to not detract from the over all mission with time consuming philosophical discussion, just question, point out, move on. Quite often one’s question or observation became your own action item, and your “committee of one” became empowered to effect a change. In contrast, at the national level we have closed doors, closed minds and a minority of personal power brokers exerting control over a largely disenfranchised populace. We need a reexamination of these procedures and processes that are so out of line with the original concepts of representative government - we need a Constitutional chiropractor!

It’s been said that anyone can imagine a possible future, but the challenge lies in getting from point A to point B. England’s “Brexit” problem immediately comes to mind as an example. How about eliminating fossil fuels? We may need to do that! And how are we to get that done? Some who study governments will recommend their “best form of government,” a “benign dictatorship!” But woe unto the populace with an all powerful leader who is less than benign. So, we make a case for checks and balances within the structure, mix in the spirit of the French Enlightenment period and we emerge with the greatest governing document in the history of the planet, the United States Constitution. But now, in spite of the wisdom gifted to us by our founders, we find ourselves at loggerheads. Barely able to move benign legislation ahead, we have nihilists dismantling safeguards and packing the courts with partisan judges, factions of the ruling class at each other’s throats, gerrymandering, vote tampering, election fixing and a politics of denial and enforced religious morality - we are at a crossroads. Not only in the US, but planet-wide the citizenry know their leaders are failing them. The present rise of nationalism and populism is symptomatic of great frustrations, the sense that our governments are not providing for the common good.

There was great hope surrounding the birth of the United Nations, but in spite of many successes, we haven’t achieved world peace, the UN forum is host to diverse factions, there is no UN enforcement power, nations conspire to flaunt or openly disregard UN guidelines and authority when it suits their own agenda. In the early years of the UN, America had a great influence in the development of its charter, we were the guiding light, bright in the halo effect of our heroic efforts to help end World War II. Unfortunately, we then decided to invest secret government agencies with great power, enabling corporate colonialism, subverting the governments of other nations when it suited our twisted sense of entitlement. Nationalism can lead to committing atrocities in the name of “national security.”

So we are left with a systemic inefficacy, an inability to identify and solve our true problems, and a legacy of hate caused by years of violent actions across the globe. If we, the human race, are going to save the planet from the follies of our own technology and flawed beliefs we need to develop a new system that will allow accurate diagnosis, truthful presentation of our problems and obstacles, and a dispassionate process to repair and make our environment better. As great as the US governmental system is, it has become corrupted, incapable of instituting any positive and pervasive change. Too many legislators have sacrificed their ideals to the need for perpetual fund-raising and a capitulation to the lobbyist. Too many people, in government and out, place party loyalty, career and personal profit ahead of their nation, ahead of their planet!

Now, back to the “moving from A to B.” First, where are we now? Dysfunctional, unable to unite against the most pervasive and singular threat to all life on earth - ever! We’re fighting to save the planet that sustains us! Humans are a young species. Our growth in technical skills has surpassed our emotional and reasoning capabilities. Witness the mixed blessings of the industrial age, the nuclear age, and petrochemicals. Petrochemicals as fuel, petrochemicals as fodder for plastics, petrochemicals in prescription drugs. Products that never wear out. Chemicals created in laboratories with complex chains of molecules never found in nature. Chemicals that won’t break down into simpler elements. Global plastic pollution, climate change from carbon and methane releases that are accelerating, vanishing species and habitats, rising sea level. Climate change and industrial pollution threaten to devastate low income societies. 1% percent of the population controlling 90% of the wealth has not resulted in egalitarian solutions, has not resulted in prosperity for all, has not provided health care and quality education. “Status quo” is not working.

Now, what about point B? We’re going to need the wisdom, as a species, to agree that the greatest achievements of the human mind come from studied use of scientific method coupled with experiential insight. Experts representing life and bio sciences, geology, meteorology, computer scientists and programmers could be called on to guide enhanced computer studies in their specialties. Call a moratorium on war, an acknowledgement that all humanity must pull together, a social and cultural recognition that interpersonal conflict is non-productive and must cease. Saving the planet, treasuring the jewel of creation we reside on, this must be first.

Using all available modes of communication, let’s create a world scientific knowledge consortium of scientists - and financiers. In sci-fi movies, faced with global challenge the rulers of the world band together to solve the problem, fight the foe. In the real world, the governments are so beholden to special interests or hidebound in their thought, they are doing no better than sitting on their hands. In this cyber age the US is being divided by pernicious propaganda and a paucity of truth. The despoilers who profit from the status quo have and will continue to sell us out no matter who the ruling party is - just a difference of degree, perhaps. We will lose the planet if we continue on an “as is” basis. The intelligentsia of planet earth can and should develop a scientific plan to get us off fossil fuels, and make it pronto. Perhaps a coalition of planet saving consortiums working in parallel using various analytical methodologies. And once the expertise, AI and computing technology is defined, offer the concept to all the earth’s governments. For free, financed by “good guy” billionaires - they’re out there.

The people’s message to government is: We want to save the planet, we know it can’t be done through normal channels, so we’re offering the solution. But we need your support - we need governments to suspend obstacles to change. We need capitalists to realize the golden goose is damn near dead, you made a lot of bread, now it’s time to get out of the way. You’re lucky we don’t kill you for what you’ve done to the earth, to our children and grandchildren - for Christ’s sake, what you’ve done to your children and grandchildren! The Americans consulted the natives they were displacing when creating the Constitution, did the founders not hear about the seven generation concept? Dear government, let us work together to save the very earth that sustains us, and please, support our efforts fully!

At this point, we, the citizens of planet earth will have unified behind the concept of using scientific guidance to save the planet, presented the solution by organizing knowledge and computer power backed by volunteer financing of pooled knowledge consortiums, and if a suitable majority of governments do not agree to get out of the way and let the wisdom and guidance of brilliant and dedicated humans get us out of this ungodly mess - we go on strike. A worldwide walkout. No one goes to work or school - small groups gather in neighborhoods to talk, work on projects - share food. It could go on for weeks. Some people may even die, dying to save the planet for their children, all children. Even when people in horrible dictatorships who are threatened with brutality and gunfire opt out, the halting of the world economy should be enough impetus for change.

Hopefully a world wide strike would not be necessary. Governments may feel the need for expediency and choose to unite with the populace to fight the quickly encroaching escalation of destructive events. Either way, we still need to save the planet and our lives will be severely impacted. The sacrifices made by households in the World War II era will be more than matched by the sacrifices required to save the planet. Many existing businesses and institutions will be negatively affected and will likely mount disinformation campaigns, even incite violence. Money previously directed to weapon production could be used to smooth these technological and societal transitions. Most likely, a complete ban on petrochemicals may be required. Expect resistance.

But, finally, imagine restoring the planet and it’s ecosystems, using applied science to enhance and improve techniques in every sphere. Prove the efficacy of caring for every individual by providing access to housing, health care, education, and some kind of combination of employment and guaranteed income. In essence, make each nation a profit-sharing corporation. Entrepreneurs and high ranking management positions should have their monetary rewards, but ultimately, how much wealth does one person need? Some very basic societal values will have to change. And rather than divine the adjustments that must be made, we’ll have to embark on the journey together and as we go, redefine our values, remake our processes, re-dedicate our governments to the welfare of the people. With knowledge of past mistakes and the foibles of human nature well in our minds, we’ll be able to craft feedback and correction loops to insure efficient and ethical behavior in all our businesses and support systems. It will be a dicey and dangerous path to implement statistical watchdog systems without creating a nightmare Orwellian world, but the benefits of preventive controls to detect theft, identify inefficiencies and report contract breaches will help prevent corruption, waste and cover-ups. Big changes in attitude and law will be forthcoming, and not without resistance and argument. But before we get on that slippery slope - first, save the planet!

Our Political Parties Are Failing Us

To my Democratic friends: Just because the Republicans are wrong on so many policy issues doesn’t make you right. And Republicans, please believe me, just because you think the Democrats are wrong on everything, that doesn’t make you right on everything. We are all missing the boat because of our binocular vision. While we look with kaleidoscope eyes through the prism of our party affiliation we are unaware of what’s happening right next to us!

It’s quite likely that no political agenda existing today holds the solution to our global woes. The planet needs its human stewards to fucking wake up! Let me pose a question: What if you held the keys to unlock the problems of the world? Let’s say you have the knowledge, or the means to develop the knowledge that will end poverty, eradicate disease, feed and clothe, and educate every human on the planet - how would you communicate your knowledge?

First, people would be skeptical. Like a sermon I heard concerning the travails of David as he tried to sell his slingshot idea: “At first they won’t receive you, then they will deceive you, until finally they’ll believe you.” The skeptical brush off followed by a backhanded attempt to prove you wrong, and eventually truth - or divine intervention - prevails.

Well, we could use a bit of divine intervention now. Our macro focus is on climate change, betrayal of the Kurds, who’s tweeting what, Impeachment? Add: Micro plastics in everything? Coral reefs dying? Species extinction, war!

And, guess what. We may be doomed. We may have already “screwed the pooch.” But it’s in human nature to pitch in and join the bucket brigade - recalling that famous scene in an old black and white film... And I’m calling black and white film old? When were motion pictures developed? When did film become commercially viable? The accelerating effects of technology are evident - thousands of years of human history with this great “hockey stick” ramp up in merely the last couple of centuries. The mere existence of oxygen wasn’t even known until 1772, about the time of the birth of our nation! Our capabilities for invention have exceeded our understanding of our technology’s effect! The internal combustion engine, plastics, antibiotics, nuclear science, computers, artificial intelligence - all are both boon and bane!

So our goal now is to save the planet from the effects of our own inventions. We inherited this marvelous earth but there was no owner’s manual and we’ve been winging it. But it’s time to realize the efficacy of applied science and get with the program. That’s just a phrase. There is no “program” to be imposed. The phrase is a recognized cultural reference in English speaking North America, perhaps of US military origin. It means take off the blinders, wake up, go with the flow, you’re needed now, we’re all pitching in. Ironically, most citizens of this planet could and likely would agree to any methodology that would heal the changes to their environment, bring peace, health and wealth to their neighborhood. The only obstacle to world unity at this point is the intransigence and obstinance of our governments.

So here’s the challenge. First, get the two dominant American political parties to take a look at their own selves, realize their devolution is harming the republic. And in atonement they can sit down together, drop their dogmatic responses, stop pursuing legislation merely designed to strengthen their chance for re-election and address planetary challenges as if they were a threat to national security. For isn’t an optimum quality of life the goal of our national security?

In capitalism there’s an attitude of financial Darwinism, that if your idea is not right for the market, or if your business plan is poorly executed you deserve to fail. If your cost of doing business is so great that your employees suffer depressed wages and limited benefits, to take up the slack because of your poor management - you’re gonna fail. And that’s where we are with our militarism, and our sense of expanding empire as a corollary to securing the borders. The mores of planet Earth have to change. For all those in power, here’s your absolution, your hall pass, your get out of jail free: just join the people and save the planet. Everything else will fall in place.

This means the bishops remove their robes and roll up their sleeves. Capitalists - if you must wear your suits, do so, but sport a blue earth lapel pin. Or the old R. Cobb ecology sticker. And start listening to your scientists. Apply all the AI and knowledge pooling the global data centers can handle. Share knowledge and techniques. Get efficient real damn fast, save money. Or even better, use all the above devices, and reward the invention of new techniques, convert militaries to community service organizations, ban fossil fuels, ban plastics - spend money to save money - print some money. Funny money - get everyone to agree it’s real money! Crypto money - community service same as data mining. Let your minds run wild, let the ideas flow. Government get out of the way- or better still - help, not hinder.

There are so many ways for politicians to err. The false hope of legislation as a problem solver when it often is a problem creator. Maybe less legalism and more finance allocation! Government should be like the person on the curling team with the broom - sweeping ahead of the stone, guiding its course. There are ideas out there, revelations and renaissance - use every available technique to encourage and bring out the science and techniques to save us. Belay the politics and adopt a unified practical approach to the crisis - please!

Retrospective: October 10, 2002

As I read this again in November of 2019, there is but one jarring note. We now know we were duped into our war of aggression: there were no cached weapons of destruction!
————————————————————————————————————————————————
Serious thoughts -- then back to making the music!

 Just watched the news of the House vote, 148-37 to start a war with Iraq. Like an Indian warrior would say, it's a good day to die.

Weather is overcast and cold in the Bay Area today, providing a properly somber backdrop. The tarot card symbolizing change is a hand coming out of the fog...

As the newscast goes to commercial I hear the chorus to Eleanor Rigby, then "Nights In White Satin" and as I hit the mute button on my stereo "We're Going Down."

In conversation with an artist friend this morning, acceptance and resignation. "I hate war," he said. "But with people the way they are, whattaya gonna do?" I replied, "The top part of the triangle is missing, the union with God is not established, the precept that all life is sacred is not universal." We fell silent, knowing things are somehow different now, not caring to repeat the familiar discussion, world peace through allegiance to God, where we applaud each other in agreement.

I recalled "The Hidden Government" by Bill Moyers. Our history of meddling in the Middle East goes back a long way. It doesn't matter that those who acted in our name, disturbing the internal affairs of foreign governments through subterfuge and assassination, did so without our consent. Today we act less through arrogance than in need. We hope that smart bombs will cut the Gordian Knot caused by fifty years of failed policy.

Whatever happened to "two wrongs don't make a right?" Americans are not aggressors. Perhaps it has been a covert policy, the "best defense is a good offense." But in our hearts, we want to love, to "live and let live."

I'm with Barbara Lee from Berkeley, and Senator Byrd of West Virginia. This is wrong. But the alternative is so enlightened and unprecedented that it would be interpreted as a sign of weakness to stop now after months of tough talk by our president. I wanted the House to reason with their hearts, not with political logic. Let the world know the true character of America as we put the bellicose cowboy in check. Senator Daschle, the democratic leader voted "yes." Does he know more about the true situation, or was it "politics as usual?"

Yesterday (October 9) was John Lennon's birthday, he would have been 62. As I heard "Oh, look at all the lonely people," I thought: How willing we are to take all the best of our civilization, the inspired music, art, theatre, culture, neighborhoods, family -- and in one hot Congressional moment -- put it all on the line, up for disaster. Not because we might fail in our tragic, expensive war. For we will prevail. But the distrust, enmity and retribution we will engender is a horrible legacy for our children, grandchildren and beyond.

The only thing one person can do is to love. Love everyone you meet, even the difficult people. Love the young soldier who goes to wreak havoc on our behalf, not a pawn in a game, but cast in society's role because of age, circumstance, love of country and family. I have found very little pure evil in my travels through this world, and very little pure good. Love the self-serving efficaciously corrupt politicians, they know no other way. Extend love to all.

It's too late to protest. This is no time for divisiveness. The handbrake has been released, the car is careening down the hill. We're all on board. Reach out to each other, listen, care. And when the 98% of the American people who don't live in a cordoned compound are found to be unanimous in humility and compassion, the news of our true character as a people will be irrepressible, spreading to even the subjugated citizens of the most despotic rulers. We will be safe when hate can no longer find volunteers.

I see an edifice of argument. Our history, the need for oil, the Gulf War, 9-11. But the promontory we stand on is too lonely. Why are our allies not supporting us? I was on vacation in Europe in August. As I paused to enjoy a canal view in Amsterdam, I spoke to a workman sitting on the tail gate of his truck. "Goede dag, meneer," resulted in a disdainful reply "Goede dag, Amerikaner." The world feels different when one walks on streets that once belonged to an occupying army. Europeans recognize and are repulsed by our insularity.

Thus, I am against the move we are about to make. Yet, I will reap the benefits of our incursion, as we interdict the supplies of mustard gas, sarin and weapons grade uranium. And those who oppose us will treat the discovery of cached weapons as lies and propaganda. Our track record is not good, the battleship Maine, the Gulf of Tonkin resolution. Are we the bully on the block, or the Lone Ranger riding to the rescue?

I have no answer, but there is something I have felt in the air for a long time. In my travels as a road musician, I have met very few people who are not dissatisfied with government. US citizens agree that although imperfect, our system is the best existing form, but leaves a lot to be desired. Is it the nature of government that it must become bureaucratic, insensitive to individuals, subservient to political expediency? I know we are only guaranteed the pursuit of happiness, but what if we all could live in peace, and let that be an example to the world? I suppose, on the national level, on the world stage, as a nation, we have tried. I fear that through the delegation of power, from the people to our representatives, we have lost our soul to bureacracy. Support for Pinochet in Chile, the Contra debacle, the history of the Phillipines. How do we break the cycle?

More questions than answers, indeed. But this I know for sure, we must love each other unashamedly, unabashedly. For when we open our hearts and let love pour through, we are tipping the balance in favor of love and giving no weight to hate.

If I were to take to the street with cardboard signage proclaiming "no Iraq war" I would engender more hate than love in the process. Yet it's important to verify that peace is preferable to war, hence my letter today. Having produced my personal "position paper" on these events. I now proceed to the true work. When the great Buddha was asked about work, he replied: "the only true work is turning sadness into joy." So I return to my tasks as a musician with undiminished effort, no need for rededication. But this I know, as sure as the world turns; I vote for peace through my actions, through my care for others and the delightful work of bringing pleasure to relaxation hours.

Love On, -Don Baraka-

Special Report: Migrant Detention Centers

I was in Representative Anna Eshoo’s district for years. Met her at a chili cook-off, she had a formal reserve that didn’t quite fit the situation but I felt a dedication and sincerity that made me feel OK about her as my representative in Congress.

Subsequently she became a member of the US National Security Council. I remembered her sober visage at the chili cook-off and nodded, “yep, that fits.” Unfortunately, the 2nd Bush administration did a total end-around of her committee and the NSA authorized a “splitter” that diverted a copy of all AT&T Internet traffic to the fifth floor of their building in San Francisco, where the NSA scanned all email traffic for key words. [email addresses with sbcglobal.net and yahoo.com we’re all scanned for key words associated with terrorism]

She was rightfully incensed. And her response to constituents expressed her outrage and I realized that her respect for the Constitution, rule of law, and moral and ethical principals was and is strong, intent and intact.

I’m extremely, even desperately saddened by atrocities committed by my nation, in my name, as it were. Unwilling to ascribe unflinching veracity to any modern media source regarding the migrants in crisis at our border, I quickly realized that actual quotations from witnesses, while “hearsay” in the classical sense of the word, nevertheless indicated that a more than tragic, systemic mistreatment of refugees and asylum seekers at our southern border was and is taking place.

Recently (July 18, 2019) I received an email describing California Representative Eshoo’s visit to the border. I regard her as an unimpeachable witness. Here then is an account you can trust.

It begs the question, “what must we, what can we possibly do?” I have a scornful, wary respect for the machinations of our rogue “Republican” government. I fear reprisals for those who become obvious in their opposition to the despotic methodologies presently being explored by the burgeoning corporate oligarchy. But silence and inaction is no longer possible. Thank God for Anna Eshoo, and other elected officials who are not self-serving shills, who prefer to provide honest, truthful leadership and serve their constituents well.

https://iqconnect.lmhostediq.com/iqextranet/view_newsletter.aspx?id=198074&c=CA18AE

If you’re not outraged, you’re not paying attention!

———————————————————

  NBC News, August 9, 2019, “What ICE did and did not do for kids left behind by Mississippi raids:”

...The Mississippi raids swept up almost 700 workers. Because of the lack of preparation for the impact of missing parents, local authorities had to improvise. One school district said it instructed bus drivers to make sure they saw a parent or a guardian at the bus stop before dropping off a child. In that district, children without parents at home were taken back to school to spend the night.

   "What I saw was traumatic, painful," said Elizabeth Iraheta, who witnessed the raid on a food processing plant where she works in Morton. "I'm thinking of the separated families, fathers and mothers deported, children left alone because their parents were arrested."

———————————————————

   But who read this article, who heard this story, who saw a video or TV broadcast? Here we are, in the 21st century, with the greatest communication technology ever conceived! But rather than experience the illumination of knowledge, too many of us choose the titillation of attitude reinforcement, the triviality of games, the ignorance of political agnostics.

   “Big data” brings us information tailored to our prior preference, no chance for challenge, introspection or growth. Information true or false, fact or fiction, filtered through the sieve of our own preference and prejudice. The decanting of these media reflections of our present and prior self takes place in “information silos,” and there is no impetus to inform, clarify or educate, only to count clicks and click-throughs, monetization with no regard for quality of information.

  We are faced with a supreme irony: the technology that once seemed destined to liberate us is instead allowed to divide, anger and inflame - placate,  obfuscate and misinform. The early days of radio, the advent of the public address system enabled the rise of Hitler. Make no mistake, we are now witnessing the power of the “narrowcast” to once again spawn a regime based on hatred and objectification of other humans based on racial and regional differences. So handy to blame “them.” So easy to cast doubt on the reports of our atrocities. And the president himself is a self-avowed student of dictatorial history and techniques.

   The citizens of the US, and the world, are being impoverished by the onslaught of the corporate mentality, and soulless governmental enablers lacking in empathy are their “bottle boys.” Congressional opportunists using their position to gather wealth and notoriety are nothing but pimps and procurers for the 1%. They couldn’t care less that their penchant for self enrichment contains the seeds of destruction for American democracy, and indeed the whole of planet Earth.

   As the vise tightens on the citizenry there is less opposition - we’re too busy trying to make a living and simply enjoy our life. The purpose of a government is to insure and promote the liberty and security of the populace. Instead we see a facade of pseudo-concern and a studied semantic dance hiding a steady dismantling of hard won benefits and protections. The anti-hero who was to rescue us from the political swamps and lift us up from decline is the worst monster yet, ascending from the depths of failed real estate deals, a fornicator making his smarmy way to the top riding the cult of his own ego.

   The evening news is rightfully concerned with the recent cluster of mass shootings - Gilroy, El Paso, Dayton - and evidence attributes these murders to a climate of hate attributable to or at the least not discouraged by presidential rhetoric. A sinful misuse of the bully pulpit. New meaning for an old phrase: It’s the bully’s pulpit now, and he uses it for self-aggrandizing, creating confusion and reinforcing his demographics. Is he helping the farmers? Bringing jobs back? Improving health care? America, we’re being robbed. Nothing delivered but distraction and inaction.

    We are being victimized by the greatest political con job ever, a study 75 years in the making. Redefining words that describe higher ideals: liberal, democrat, socialist - and turning them into scornful epithets. Embracing the politics of division as a convenience to assure reelection. Removing societal safeguards to ease cost requirements for industries, providing tax breaks for corporations and the rich. All the above, bad enough! But If you want to understand the true nature of the self-righteous, just listen to their accusations and realize they are revealing their own mental makeup, the contents of their own mind, their own dark methodologies. And the worst sin of today’s power elite is encouraging and employing a scornful misapplication of law enforcement power.

   Nights of unrest in Ferguson, amused inaction in Charlottesville, family separation and inhumane conditions at the southern border. Acting in our name, our government is perpetrating unnecessary cruelty and defiling America’s reputation in the eyes of the world. And on Wednesday, August 7, 2019 our nation consciously and cruelly chose the first day of school to round up and harass suspected violators of immigration laws in Mississippi, leaving distraught children stranded with no understanding of where their parents had disappeared to.

   The callousness and evil implicit in the planning and timing of this ICE roundup is no less than diabolical. We should be crying out against this heartless and conscious effort to disrupt and sadden innocent lives! And for what? To exemplify the mental anguish and pain of the affected families and children, to discourage immigration and thoughts of asylum? This is power run amok. There is some conjecture and concern that our president is indeed mentally ill, and the evidence is mounting. The August 7 ICE police action leads one to imagine a heartless villain plotting maximum heartache and cackling with satisfaction at the effect of his nefarious deeds. 

   The evil we have just witnessed is not only diabolical, but preventable - and provocative! It is a challenge to those who believe in moral and ethical principles. There was no kindness, no respect for human dignity in this action. It runs against every noble quality America has been known for. People of good conscience everywhere must now stand and decry this administration’s studied application of acts of cruelty. Atrocities are being committed in our name. This is inflicting pain for political expediency. If we let this action slide without recognizing it for what it is - torture! - we will surely see more. It’s a provocation and a probe to see if we have become numb, disconsolate and too tired to respond.

   And it’s a test to see if the modern media’s segmented delivery of information is able to shade ever more unconscionable acts of despotism. It’s time to stand for what we know is right, to prevent heartless acts of violence and cruelty and restore the highest ideals of humanity as our credo.

  "Help ever, hurt never"

“The Mask” in orange...

“Somebody stop me!”

Donald Trump is “The Mask” in orange!

We don’t learn from history! The fall of the Roman Empire, the rise of Hitler in Germany - both are applicable today. We have a narcissistic incompetent as our president. With complicity from the gloating power hungry, thinly veiled libertarians who hijacked the Republican Party our nation is heading for a come-uppance.

We had a cautious detente with Iran, tore up the nuclear treaty and proceeded to crush their citizenry with sanctions. Their leaders still remember the CIA deposing Premier Mossadeq and reinstalling Shah Pahlavi in 1953. Under the umbrella of our endless war against “terror” we are insulting our European allies and antagonizing Iranian leadership into a shooting war.

Trump’s love for the despot playbook has him linking arms with Kim Jong Un - as if admiration for the tyrant would halt North Korea’s march to nuclear weaponry and more effective missiles. Even the bellicose security adviser John Bolton seems placated while the threat of attack on the Pacific Coast is growing.

The threat of world-wide economic recession is now being exacerbated by Trump’s tirades and hastily imposed tariffs. The best response to China’s growing tech prowess and our trade deficit would be to increase US efficiency, r&d and education.

The lessons of history teach us that increasing empire and squandering a nation’s wealth on armament and troops are precursors to social and economic collapse. $738 billion for defense in 2020 while supposed fiscal conservatives lay down rather than risk presidential ire and the possibility of bad press in their home districts. We should be eliminating waste and performing intelligent cost reductions and working in concert with the rest of earth’s nations to save the planet rather than thoughtlessly expanding our overly bellicose global military presence.

Domestically we are plagued by deep division due to the approximately 75 year history of far right propaganda and libertarian subterfuge. Gerrymandering, voter role purges, restrictive identification requirements and ballot tampering are accelerating. Blatant racist appeals are inciting violence. Police agencies are increasingly militarized and the dangers of the profession made worse by intransigence on the subject of weapons control. We have allowed our local constabularies a gestapo like stance with close to blanket pardons for murder behind the badge.

The present need for giant campaign funds to guarantee election has led to legislators who are beholden to lobbyists and business interests. Tax cuts for the wealthy, offshore shelters for cash and profits, bank and corporate malfeasance have drained the populace of discretionary income. Medical care as a profit seeking enterprise, price gouging on services and prescriptions - and still the right-wingers seek the repeal of the Affordable Care Act and continue to tie that favorable legislation to the negativity of the president’s scorn for former president Barack Obama.

The US has wasted a great opportunity by pillaging South America with the economic aggression and theft of colonialism. We supported right wing dictators, connived to remove benign heads of state starting with President Arbenz of Guatemala in a 1954 CIA coup. In the 80s our violent policies in San Salvador created the dreaded MS13 gang, and when gang members migrated here we imprisoned them. Gangs convert other prisoners, the problem is replicated and amplified in ghettos created by US racism and denial of educational resources to communities of color, then when the problem grows we deport these US made criminals who then ravage the countries they came from. Now that thousands of innocents are fleeing the countries we ruined through years of neglect and exploitation our president denigrates and imprisons asylum seekers, shaming our country in the eyes of the world.

It’s time to halt the destruction. Even if the morally bankrupt Republicans in the Senate would fail to convict, we must begin impeachment proceedings! It won’t be easy to undo 75 years of right wing subterfuge, the semantic efforts to create negative signal reactions to previously benign concepts like liberalism, social welfare, public assistance, secular education and the entrenched insularity of libertarian institutions dedicated to rewriting the Constitution. But the present administration is dismantling centuries of humanitarian progress while the populace is distracted with the presidential bully’s public outbursts and transparent didactic appeals to the immoralities of hatred and violence. And the largely tacit response to his history of predatory sexual violence by his political party and the American press needs to be checked as well.

Dear Legislator:

Elections are on the horizon. As you know, many Americans have developed strong opinions, influenced by their peer group, reinforced by a narrow selection of news media. Combine that with opinion polls and your own access to demographic studies, and you know what concerns the voting public. But rather than directing your campaign in a way that might maximize your support while widening the divisions in our country, it may be time to become bigger than the fray and offer some leadership.

It seems to be off the radar, but we need a revision in our foreign policy. We have been at war for 227 years out of our 243 as a nation. I know it would cost you a lot to deny the donations of the various “Daddy Warbucks” who have a vested interest in armament sales, but a platform dedicated to rolling back the Orwellian reality of continuous war might be enough to encourage grass roots donations. I’m broke on my ass but I’d find a way to donate a hundred bucks to the party that would set a priority of ending destructive foreign alliances and incursions. Our strained relations with North Korea, Iran and now Venezuela are symptomatic of our failed diplomacy.

World trade? The plight of US workers, the household economics of millions here and abroad, all are suffering from a 19th century colonial outlook that must be revamped before the US is simply bypassed as a former power by nations with a more practical and contemporary view of present day economics. The trade war with China is utter folly. Achievement based competition would be much healthier.

Gun violence may be more a problem of suicide prevention than gun control. Improving our outmoded medical system and providing care options for troubled individuals would be a better use of our energies and would likely receive a better reception than gun confiscation. How about mandatory gun education, licensing gated by weapon sales, and in this digital age it would be easy to make safety course completion records available to sellers as a prerequisite to sales.

Then there’s the decreasing prosperity of individuals and the American family. Some people may view this as an inevitable consequence of globalization, responding by either fighting the inevitable interdependence of all nations or shrugging and rationalizing our national policy failures in economics and international cooperation. Eliminating measures to reverse industry effects on the ecosphere and blaming immigration for job losses is retrograde policy bordering on madness. Fully embracing green power, training and motivating people to excel in new technologies, providing a living wage for traditional endeavors - these types of changes incur cost at implementation - an unpopular but necessary proposal.

If eternal war posturing and concomitant spending were removed from the picture we could quite possibly afford universal education, and replace welfare and student loans with investment in our citizens, rather than penalizing those seeking a better future. An increased tax burden on corporations or government control of business would be dangerously close to fascism, but we must halt the tax loopholes and subterfuge that allow excess profiteering with no regard for the welfare of the nation. Mandatory profit-sharing, required employee ownership of stock shares, a guaranteed minimum income - maybe all these remedies applied together would restore a love for country, pride of citizenship and cohesiveness in our communities.

Admittedly, uncontrolled immigration would be a problem until we work religiously to improve the quality of life in all the Americas. The inticement for illegals is our employers who depend on cheap labor and allow false social security information to pass by without scrutiny. There’s no immediate answer to the problem of filling menial jobs that hold little or no appeal within our culture. Societal mores will need to change, giving respect to careers previously scorned due to our historic vision of upward mobility. Increasing compensation, underwriting companies who cannot profit if employees are paid beyond the poverty level, saluting those who choose to serve - these are big changes, but an inspired leadership can change established attitudes.

And colonialism, imperialism and intervention in other countries politics must be replaced with enlightened and constructive foreign aid programs. Something akin to the peace corps could replace the threat of military might and our economic domination can no longer be allowed to drain their economies. We need to lift our neighbors up, abandon “zero sum” economic philosophies. World education, world development, starting in our own hemisphere and expanding to other geographies - hopefully by invitation once regional successes are known - this would be far better than continuing our bellicose policies and shading the knowledge of both our corporate and clandestine operations.

These are large changes that require true leadership, increasing the understanding of the citizenry and inspiring us to accomplish. We are inclined to adopt one of the two major parties and root for our chosen allegiance as though we were sports fans - obviating the need for thinking. Convincing people to accept previously obfuscated facts and replace their mindless party affiliation with an interest and demand for reality based solutions is the way out of the present morass and recent decline of American greatness.

How ironic that we have fallen prey to a con man, the most unqualified and destructive persona we have ever had occupying the White House. In an America already great for its penchant for liberty, already great for our compassion, great for our sense of equality and human dignity - we have been taken down a path of internal division and betrayal of our long standing allies with the slogan “Make America Great Again!”

Fighting the popular prevalence of illogic and untruth is a big assignment. The restoration of America as a beacon of truth and a champion of human rights in the eyes of the world is the true task for the future. Truth and human respect right here at home would be a great starting place, and the opportunity presents itself in our next great election cycle. Please don’t exacerbate our problems by descending to the lowest common denominator. Please rise above the fray, regain an Olympian perspective and inspire us to new solutions. Please unite and guide us to solve our problems without pausing to cast blame. Help us all work together as Americans, disregard party affiliations, stop spinning our wheels and end homelessness, heal the sick and injured, prevent madness, promote education, encourage faith and probity, improve our infrastructure, share wealth at home and abroad, and above all, let’s save the planet!

Who Will Save the Planet?

   Will Earth Survive Humanity?

   The hominid species, with opposed thumb, magnificently malleable brain and the blessing/curse of supreme adaptability is now the alpha species on this remarkable planet. The way we act sometimes makes me feel we don't deserve this beautiful earth, and we're going to lose her.

   We all love a happy ending. So much so, we rarely consider the possibility of tragedy, as if voicing our fears would somehow call forth negative forces that would work against our best interest. Exactly the opposite: we need concern and focus to mitigate and reverse our increasingly inappropriate impact on the very orb that sustains us. 

   Not only that - we should have started a long time ago. Far better to do preventive than cleanup. Initially there was some debate about the science. “No, just an accident the canary died," if you get my drift. Later, denial from those who profit from the status quo. Politics is expediency and messing with existing systems is met with resistance. Now our youth, who stand to suffer the most from their elders’ laxity, are bringing attention to the desecration of this unique planet, the only one of any history and beauty within light years of reach - and the argument becomes a political stalemate.

  Thus we find that a cadre of profiteering mindset has bought a position of power and will exercise every device to retain and improve that position. Regardless of impact on fellow humans or the mother planet, not only do they deny, but actually abet the destruction. It's a simple shake of the head, arrogance of power, flat out denial. When we all need to work together, instead we are divided.

  In a world where marketing rules, and unit volume must increase, this business of stopping to clean up our shit and reverse the damage must be declaimed. We are at a point where the analyzers of the "lizard brain" know how to push our buttons. If you're not distracted by the constant circuses that have come to pass as culture in much of the world, then you're routed to a deadening routine - neither of which offer opportunity for increased knowledge, analytical or philosophical thought. Thus a few power brokers control the fate of the world.

And there’s a basic schism in the species Homo Sapiens, stemming from our sexuality, our dual nature, male and female. Or if you prefer, female and male. We are a young species, only here for thousands of years on a gracious planet that has taken millennia to ripen and allow our occupation. Compared to eons, our history is short. Yet our accomplishments are great. Apparently greater than our ability to understand what we have wrought. Greater than our ability to control what we have invented. Our inventiveness surpasses our ability to foresee possible consequences. Yet we push ahead with a masculine drive, undeterred by what might be considered as matriarchal cautions.

   Predominately we have male dominated societies, with some female communities. We have families patriarchal and matriarchal. Studies have shown that conservative voters are more likely to come from "father knows best" households while those who are more liberal in their thought live in households where tasks are shared and group discussion and consensus lead to decisions. There are marketers and advisors playing us like violins. They appeal to our "demographics" to create markets for their products, whether they be material, ephemeral or political. If it's to their advantage, they will divide us. Unity is not a goal of those in power, while control is.

  Please wake up, wherever you are, and don't be persuaded by the classic arguments: "us against them," "they are causing your trouble!" We are separated by those who enjoy power. Their lust for superiority allows them to ignore atrocities with insular denial. Government is not going to save the planet. Corporations are not going to save the planet. People who love each other as fellow humans, people who ignore the manufactured differences that are dividing us, everyday people are the ones who will save the planet.

   But now we need an eleventh hour solution, a buzzer shot, a breakthrough! Love and understanding are the prerequisites to working together. We should have perfected that a long time ago, but it's not out of reach. There are many great stories of human solidarity in the clutch situation - but it will take an unprecedented and radical look at the effects of our technologies, coupled with a quantum leap in moral and ethical maturation to accomplish this one. We all love a happy ending. The problem is, we never thought there could even be an ending!