Day 98 – Impossible Mountain

Monday April 26, 2021

One of the abilities I have is to find similarities and patterns in disparate events. Hawkins had that too. Einstein did “thought experiments.” Seymour Cray kept inventing new computers that built off of what he had done before, but he would change some fundamental thing while keeping the others constant. 

I have noticed that we, as a nation, are up against some seemingly intractable problems: guns and health care. The underlying problem is that people don’t like change. Change suggests risk or getting out of your comfort zone. Folks don’t like that. They’d rather stick to the devil they know. It takes a lot to get someone to change. However, if you can get someone to do something the new something can become the thing they become comfortable with and then they don’t want to go back because that would involve change. Hence, the reason the salesman says take the car home, if you don’t like it bring it back.

But how do you do that with guns or health care? One of the problems is recognizing that any situation, any proposal, any idea will, most likely, not be perfect. It won’t solve every situation. Therein lies the impossible mountain. Can you get enough people to take a test drive, take it home, and let that become the new normal?

It can happen. It happened with the Thompson submachine gun after the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre. It’s happened with Obamacare.

The question becomes can we move to further improve our lives in these areas or will inertia continue to hold us back?

There are powerful forces both seen and unrecognized by many that work against this. The most basic one is change. Another is structural. Another is there are folks who actively are working to make sure those changes don’t happen.

Let’s deal with change. People don’t like to change. Getting them to change is hard. It requires they understand and are willing to put thoughts into action. The best remedy is education.

The second one is structural and this is what could lead to the destruction of the country as we know it. The majority of the people elected to the Senate are elected by a minority of the population. This means that the ideas of a few can rule us all unless some fundamental change is made. I don’t see it changing. I therefore see that at some point in time the government we have will fail to work and something will replace it, and whatever it is won’t be pretty.

There are coalitions of people dedicated to getting an unfair advantage and/or of holding on to power at all costs. 

History has shown that when the rich take power they make sure they don’t have to pay their fair share. We have seen this not only in our country but around the world. Elizabeth Warren, when she was running for President, proposed taxing the rich at 2% of their assets. The rich were horrified. However, that is the percentage they pay every year to the financial consultants and planners they have who are investing their money. Okay, if you are really rich you pay less, but the average sh much rich person pays 2% on assets every year.

What is called “the conservatives” is a coalition of people, companies, and other entities that don’t have the principles that our country and culture were supposedly founded on in mind. 

To understand what they want, read Democracy in Chains. At least the manipulator that are conscious that they are manipulating are following the principles and plans laid out int hat book. There is some obfuscation and subtlety in what they are doing, but not much. Since the Trump administration there has been even less. In other words, if you are paying attention it’s pretty f*ing obvious. 

Because this is a loose coalition of varied interests I can’t say it’s all one thing or another. However, what one can say is – there is nothing new here. It’s the same play book that they have used forever throughout history. We know how this ends.

The question becomes, “Can we the people force a different outcome?”

Therein lies the big question.

We can begin by chipping away at little things.

Like can someone ask Jim Jordan what he has accomplished since being elected to Congress? Devin Nunes? Same thing. We can make a longer list but for now let’s keep it short.

Have a Great Day! Remember, today is the first day of the rest of your life! 

Did you know the Romans had a room called The Vomitorium? Do you think all new construction should have such a room?

PS I meant to take that shot. With the left foot, with the right…