Donald Trump is the first president in my lifetime who does not try to unite the American people — does not even pretend to try. Instead he tries to divide us. We are witnessing the consequences of three years of this deliberate effort. We are witnessing the consequences of three years without mature leadership.
George Floyd's memorial service is being held today. It would be remiss of me not to mention rioting, looting, police brutality, a continuing pandemic, and an unemployment rate approaching 20%.
It has been an eventful week, but what's next? Will any politicians look past the next election to propose and pass meaningful reform legislation? Does anyone have a plan to help looted businesses? How many people who posted black squares will remember George Floyd in September? Will Black lives still matter when the hashtag is no longer trending on Twitter? Are any states stockpiling PPE so healthcare providers won't run short if there's a second or third coronavirus wave? Is anyone saving a bit of extra money to assist an unemployed neighbor when unemployment benefits run out?
In 2020 T.S. Eliot's "The Hollow Men" seems prophetic:
Between the idea
And the reality
Between the motion
And the act
Falls the Shadow
For Thine is the Kingdom
Between the conception
And the creation
Between the emotion
And the response
Falls the Shadow
Life is very long
Between the desire
And the spasm
Between the potency
And the existence
Between the essence
And the descent
Falls the Shadow
For Thine is the Kingdom
For Thine is
Life is
For Thine is the
This is the way the world ends
This is the way the world ends
This is the way the world ends
Not with a bang but with a whimper.
