Lyle Northey (Silent/Boomer)

Our nation is at a very decisive point in its history. There are basically two points of view being expressed as to what our future should become. One view is of a nation run by a dictator that has the power of life and death at his fingertips. If you have angered him for any reason he will take retribution. The campaign to become this omnipotent person is being conducted by a man that literally has one foot in a grave and the other on a banana peel.
His favorite tool in his war chest to greatness is division and hate. Make the future subjects to hate each other and divide them so that there is no trust or compassion one for another. When that has been done he will be able to do as he pleases and no one will challenge him. If he wishes to steal from the national treasury for personal gain, that is okay. If he wishes to put people in prison for failing to honor him in the manner he expects, that is okay. If he takes a fancy to your wife, or teenage daughter and wants to have them for his pleasure, that is okay as well.
There are some wealthy people that are pushing this program because they feel that they will be able to do pretty much the same things and get away with it. The other idea would be to be ready to step in when he checks out. They don’t mind that this course of events could lead to bloodshed and the collapse of society, they are not happy with the way things are so as long as they don’t have to suffer it matters not.
The other candidate in this time of distress is basing her campaign on hope, and inclusiveness, and caring. She is aware that everyone has aspirations and the ideal setting for most to reach their goal is in a society with promise and opportunity.
The gap between the visions is as epic as space between galaxies. The journey between the two is so vast that it appears to be beyond passage. Some will never make the change because they will not rise above the pettiness of their own prejudice over the things they feel divide us. Others have already realized that those differences are so very insignificant and the future is so much more important, not just for the here and now, but for as long as our nation stands for what it was founded for, that they must make the change.
So the question each of us has to ask ourselves is, “What do you want your future and that of your children to be?” Will it be the war torn streets of a battle ground where people are searching for food or water or a loved one, or will it be where all are equally respected and cared for?
We as a species have plenty of depictions of the aftermath of war, from antiquity till today, and that is not a positive image. The results of those wars have been graphically different depending on a number of factors. Some have ended with peace and nation building. Others have ended with entire societies being oppressed because of who came to power when the dust settled.
Will mankind ever get over this urge to fight? Do not have the answer to that question but hope that the energy wasted on fighting can somehow be put to a more productive use.