Writing about the evolution of alphabets and languages, Frederick Bodmer argues, “In the ancient world and in medieval times, mankind had not got used to rapid change. Great innovations were possible only when circumstances conspired to force people to face new problems without the handicap of old habits” ( 54).*
You live, by contrast in an age of rapid change—in some ways. Ironically, in midst of such vicissitudes, habits often remain unchanged, especially habits of attitude and mind. Elections bring this unwavering adherence to the “old” to the forefront of most pundit programs and editorial pages. Regardless of circumstances apparently forcing Americans to face new problems without the encumbrance of old thinking, pundits, editors, and many Americans refuse to relinquish their long-held beliefs and allegiances.
In 2022, after two years of the Biden Administration’s failed policies that led to 1) the loss of 11,000 union jobs on the Keystone Pipeline (a pipeline that passed every environmental test thrown at it), 2) a disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan that included the loss of a vital airbase and billions of dollars in military equipment to a confirmed enemy of the United States and the loss of freedoms for Afghanis and especially for Afghani women plus the needless deaths of Americans and their Afghani allies, 3) the loss of oil independence achieved under the previous administration, 4) the refusal by the Federal government to secure the southern border, leading to a rise in drug cartel and human trafficking activity that led to rapes and abandonments of children and the deaths of smuggled illegal aliens plus the crossing in the States of dozens of terrorists and the fentanyl deaths of at least 100,000 Americans, 5) an inflation rate that soared to more than 8%, 6) a perception of weakness that emboldened Xi to threaten Taiwan, Putin to invade Ukraine, and Kim to threaten S. Korea and Japan, 7) the coverup of the President’s son’s illegal activities and the Biden family’s selling influence, 8) the Biden Justice Department’s nonexistent or slow response to real crimes in favor of pursuing investigations at the urging of school boards of parents who protested school board policies, 9) false claims against border agents, and 10) spending binges of trillions of dollars with billions lost to scammers—after two years of such governing and other detrimental dealings, many Democrats will continue to support Democrat candidates because they will not relinquish their long-held beliefs in an ever-widening socialist grip on what was once the world’s prime model of a democratic republic. In short, when democratic voters go to the polls next week, many of them will pull the levers for their party’s candidates, including an inarticulate stroke victim running for senate in Pennsylvania. Onto these charges of incompetence in the current administration, I’ll add the charge that the President, a proven inveterate liar and gaffe machine coupled with a Vice President who apparently can only laugh when asked a question and can only repeat phrases when giving a speech, make this administration one of the most incompetent governing bodies on the planet. But I will not throw all Democrats into the same barrel. Some understand the dangers of America’s current path, but I have yet to hear dissenting voices. Apparently, for most representatives and senators, voicing dissent rings a death knell for a political career and a relentless attack by the Leftist Press and social media trolls.
But, hey, what do I know? It just seems to me that—to borrow Bodmer’s words—when circumstances conspire to force people to face new problems without the handicap of old habits, modern minds are not much different from ancient minds. No political party is without its flaws and mistakes because all parties are composed of fallible—and sometimes corrupt—humans Nevertheless, what I enumerated above seems to be more than enough to warrant a change.
*The Loom Of Language: An Approach to the Mastery of Many Languages. (1944). New York. W. W. Norton & Company, Inc., 1985.
You live, by contrast in an age of rapid change—in some ways. Ironically, in midst of such vicissitudes, habits often remain unchanged, especially habits of attitude and mind. Elections bring this unwavering adherence to the “old” to the forefront of most pundit programs and editorial pages. Regardless of circumstances apparently forcing Americans to face new problems without the encumbrance of old thinking, pundits, editors, and many Americans refuse to relinquish their long-held beliefs and allegiances.
In 2022, after two years of the Biden Administration’s failed policies that led to 1) the loss of 11,000 union jobs on the Keystone Pipeline (a pipeline that passed every environmental test thrown at it), 2) a disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan that included the loss of a vital airbase and billions of dollars in military equipment to a confirmed enemy of the United States and the loss of freedoms for Afghanis and especially for Afghani women plus the needless deaths of Americans and their Afghani allies, 3) the loss of oil independence achieved under the previous administration, 4) the refusal by the Federal government to secure the southern border, leading to a rise in drug cartel and human trafficking activity that led to rapes and abandonments of children and the deaths of smuggled illegal aliens plus the crossing in the States of dozens of terrorists and the fentanyl deaths of at least 100,000 Americans, 5) an inflation rate that soared to more than 8%, 6) a perception of weakness that emboldened Xi to threaten Taiwan, Putin to invade Ukraine, and Kim to threaten S. Korea and Japan, 7) the coverup of the President’s son’s illegal activities and the Biden family’s selling influence, 8) the Biden Justice Department’s nonexistent or slow response to real crimes in favor of pursuing investigations at the urging of school boards of parents who protested school board policies, 9) false claims against border agents, and 10) spending binges of trillions of dollars with billions lost to scammers—after two years of such governing and other detrimental dealings, many Democrats will continue to support Democrat candidates because they will not relinquish their long-held beliefs in an ever-widening socialist grip on what was once the world’s prime model of a democratic republic. In short, when democratic voters go to the polls next week, many of them will pull the levers for their party’s candidates, including an inarticulate stroke victim running for senate in Pennsylvania. Onto these charges of incompetence in the current administration, I’ll add the charge that the President, a proven inveterate liar and gaffe machine coupled with a Vice President who apparently can only laugh when asked a question and can only repeat phrases when giving a speech, make this administration one of the most incompetent governing bodies on the planet. But I will not throw all Democrats into the same barrel. Some understand the dangers of America’s current path, but I have yet to hear dissenting voices. Apparently, for most representatives and senators, voicing dissent rings a death knell for a political career and a relentless attack by the Leftist Press and social media trolls.
But, hey, what do I know? It just seems to me that—to borrow Bodmer’s words—when circumstances conspire to force people to face new problems without the handicap of old habits, modern minds are not much different from ancient minds. No political party is without its flaws and mistakes because all parties are composed of fallible—and sometimes corrupt—humans Nevertheless, what I enumerated above seems to be more than enough to warrant a change.
*The Loom Of Language: An Approach to the Mastery of Many Languages. (1944). New York. W. W. Norton & Company, Inc., 1985.
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