Calm Before the Storm
If it seems that I have been pretty quiet this summer, at least in terms of writing on this site, you are right. You can blame it on laziness, but certainly not on the lack of news.
We are seeing the most tumultuous presidential campaign in recent history, as the Democrats booted its incumbent leader after his age-revealing deficiencies in his debate with the convicted felon who is trying to regain the throne he believes is rightfully his. It looked as if Trump would coast back to the White House after a failed assassination attempt and Biden’s fading faculties thrust him into the lead. However, after a Nancy Pelosi-directed Mob Hit forced Biden out of the race, the Dems quickly anointed Vice President Kamala Harris, a woman who has reignited the fading hopes of her party with a burst of energy that has both puzzled and disarmed the Scowling One.
Of course, much more has been happening around the world. In Great Britain, the Tories have surrendered their seemingly indefatigable hold on power amidst a staggering economy that is not least because of the country’s disastrous break with the rest of Europe through Brexit. In France, the far right National Rally of Marine Le Pen failed to achieve its “certain” ascendance after President Emmanuel Macron called a senseless election that has left the country in political limbo with both the left and the right having equally frightening claims to power.
France and Macron did get a respite from the chaos by hosting a glorious Olympics in Paris which even had the grouchy French celebrating the aesthetic and athletic triumphs that the Games produced. We won’t soon forget the exploits of Biles, Ledecky, hometown hero Marchand, McLaughlin-Levrone and the extra-human distance running of the Netherlands Sifan-Hassan, who medaled in the 5,000 and 10,000 meters and topped it all by winning the Marathon, all distances that were not long ago thought to be beyond women’s physical capacities.
The world continues to burn as soaring temperatures and wildfires raged. The U.S. Supreme Court moved closer to declaring the country’s president a King by issuing an astounding immunity ruling and continues to protect virtually unrestricted gun ownership despite a presidential assassination attempt and almost daily mass shootings while furthering its assault on a woman’s right to control her own body.
Major wars still carry on in Gaza, Ukraine and Sudan. No longer are we united as a country in picking the “right” side. We remain divided but still marvel at man’s seemingly unlimited capacity for cruelty and violence towards our fellow man.
The Boston Celtics won the fabled franchise’s record-tying 18th NBA championship while Kaitlin Clark carried her unworldly talent to the WNBA with barely a hiccup. Taylor Swift maintained her title as the Empress of the World while raking in billions from her Eras Tour, marred only by yet another threat of mass violence that caused her to cancel a three day stop in Vienna.
But, getting back to my relative lack of production, I can only blame it on the most sublime summer we have had in Maine in recent years. I just couldn’t bring myself to sit in front of a keyboard when day after day of 70 degree sunshine forced me to spend the days on the golf course, pedaling my bike, or paddling on the water in my kayak.
While much of the world suffered more and more frequent climate-related disasters, we were rewarded here with stunning weather. Maybe it was reparation for the devastating January storms that wreaked destruction, from displaced boulders and upturned roads to the leveling of protective sand dunes to houses that suffered irreparable damages on our beach. But, whatever the cause of summer’s clime, we suffered it gladly and hope for more of the same next year.
However, as we head into the tumult that will comprise the last two months of this election, among the economy, inflation and immigration, let’s not forget that none of it will matter if the planet becomes uninhabitable. Don’t forget: only our very existence is at stake.
