Welcome, God and All...
In my previous post, I brought up that I believe the pace of things have accelerated - certainly since the COVID lockdowns four years ago. Then, many of us had to curb at least part of our activities; and we weren't happy about it. There was a presidential election on the horizon - and we weren't happy about that, either.
Another surprise this summer is the continuing erosion of common sense and sensibility in the US of A. (I believe so, anyway.) Why would it be possible for the previous occupant of the seat of government - who left in a huff and something of a disgrace, no matter how you look at it - how is it possible that he's running for that office again? What kind of stranglehold does he have on conservative policies and people that after everything that's been thrown at him, he emerges as the candidate with virtually no opposition?
And given the rollercoaster ride the nation has been on under his successor, why did anyone think he could rest on his record as the incumbent and become the frontrunner for his party - again, unopposed?
There have been remarks from all over America that neither candidate is truly fit for office. President Joe Biden, at age 81, was definitely showing signs indicating a slowing of cognitive ability. And his track record as president is hardly stellar. His opponent, former President Donald Trump, at age 78, is not much better as he has spent most of the last four years in one court room or another, and when he is not, he has been carrying on and on about how the 2020 election was rigged and stolen from him. Then there was the debate just a few weeks ago, in which Biden failed miserably while Trump continued to carry on with many half-truths if not outright lies; it depends on which pundits you listen to.
To top it all off, there was an assassination attempt on Mr. Trump at a rally in rural Pennsylvania only a few days ago. There was a huuuuge breakdown in security at all levels, and the director of the Secret Service has become the scapegoat in all this and was forced to resign.
There was a call by both political parties to tone down the campaign rhetoric, stating that "political violence has no place in America." That lasted less than a week. It should be made clear that, while there is no excuse for it, political violence has never been far from the surface in our nation's history. From the Boston Tea Party to the duel between Aaron Burr and Alexander Hamilton, to assassination attempts against Presidents Lincoin (1865), Kennedy (1963), and Reagan (1981, which failed); along with many other demonstrations turned to riots, political violence is a thread that has run (unbroken, so it seems) throughout our history.
Coming to a head was the fear that Biden would lose the election in November, he was ultimately coerced by other leaders of his party to end his run for reelection. First, he releases a statement on social media, in part because he tested positive for the latest COVID variant and had to isolate at his beach house in Delaware. Just a couple of days ago he was cleared to return to the White House and gave a nationwide address that, in fifteen minutes, said nothing about why he changed his mind, only that is was for the good and unity of his political party. He might have said at the very beginning that he decided for the good and unity of the country as a whole, but it was clear that he was being pushed out by his political party. And yet, the praise and laud and thanksgiving for Biden's half-century in politics rang out.
Quickly, with time being a concern and having few options, the vice-president, Kamala Harris, has been given the mantle of candidacy with seemingly overwhelming support. I don't know all the idiosyncrasies of the election process, nor can I claim whether or not this development could be evidence of rigging the upcoming election, but one thing is clear to me - the voice of the people who voted for Joe Biden in the primaries has been denied, and that troubles me. It seems to sidestep the intentions of our founding fathers and sets up a situation where no future election may be fair and free.
All this colors the upcoming convention in Chicago next month. The last one held here was in 1968; at that time there was rioting in the streets over the failed policies of the government at the time, along with our involvement in Vietnam. This time, while attempting to be removed from it, we have failed government policies, and involvement in the wars between Russia and the Ukraine, and Israel vs. Palestine. I had a bad feeling about what could potentially happen at the convention, and it's not relieved at all by the changing of the nominee over the last few days.
It seems we should all be on our knees repenting, asking God to intervene that calm and order might be restored in our land; but it seems a majority of the American public doesn't believe in that anymore...
And there are still more surprises, those that have a very personal, spiritual, and direct impact on me, and these are even larger than life in my mind than what I've chronicled here...how does this counter the implications the news cycle always wants to bring up? How does any of it get me closer to God, and what do I do with it to make my corner of His kingdom on Planet Mother Earth a cut above the fray?
More to come...until then, may God be with you - and may He have mercy on us all...
+the Phoenix
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