I especially appreciate your expressions that humanity is being tested. The human versus the proto-sapiens. Can we effect a turn onto a better path, leaving several thousand years a memory, a teaching "moment", an object lesson of what happens when we surrender to convenience and proto-sapiens bullying? Everything that happens today is a marker of what we have to do next!
"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times" ... 😉🙂
From Google's AI, Gemini: The quote "it was the best of times it was the worst of times" is the famous opening line from Charles Dickens' novel, A Tale of Two Cities. It introduces the novel's theme of contrast and paradox by juxtaposing opposing ideas, such as "the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness" and "the season of light, it was the season of darkness". The opening reflects the contradictory nature of life and has been used to describe various eras, including our own, which also experiences extremes of progress and hardship."
Democracy really only "works" if the population is smallish, and more or less sane and responsible. Not terribly well otherwise. You in particular might like this quote on the topic from Eleanor Roosevelt -- the power behind the throne?:
ER: "... our children must learn...to face full responsibility for their actions, to make their own choices and cope with the results...the whole democratic system...depends upon it. For our system is founded on self-government, which is untenable if the individuals who make up the system are unable to govern themselves.” ― Eleanor Roosevelt
Just in the midst of re-reading a bit of H.G. Wells' Outline of History, particularly the bit on Aristotle and Greece -- arguably the birth place of democracy -- and some reason there to argue, again, that democracy really only works where there's a single tribe and the responsible "elders" get to chose various courses of group action. Not terribly effective when there are multiple tribes populated by irresponsible and ungovernable heathens -- c.f., Amurika:
Our Tribes and Tribulations; Gathering by the campfire in our ideological tribes, we bask in the warm glow of unchallenged beliefs.
I especially appreciate your expressions that humanity is being tested. The human versus the proto-sapiens. Can we effect a turn onto a better path, leaving several thousand years a memory, a teaching "moment", an object lesson of what happens when we surrender to convenience and proto-sapiens bullying? Everything that happens today is a marker of what we have to do next!
Thank you for this heartfelt note. It is a challenging time.
"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times" ... 😉🙂
From Google's AI, Gemini: The quote "it was the best of times it was the worst of times" is the famous opening line from Charles Dickens' novel, A Tale of Two Cities. It introduces the novel's theme of contrast and paradox by juxtaposing opposing ideas, such as "the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness" and "the season of light, it was the season of darkness". The opening reflects the contradictory nature of life and has been used to describe various eras, including our own, which also experiences extremes of progress and hardship."
Both you and Dickens must follow the Dao. Paradox is a great teacher.
I just listened to with Steve Schmidt.
As a pragmatic rural humanitarian, I am delighted to find you.
Right, Mike.
Democracy really only "works" if the population is smallish, and more or less sane and responsible. Not terribly well otherwise. You in particular might like this quote on the topic from Eleanor Roosevelt -- the power behind the throne?:
ER: "... our children must learn...to face full responsibility for their actions, to make their own choices and cope with the results...the whole democratic system...depends upon it. For our system is founded on self-government, which is untenable if the individuals who make up the system are unable to govern themselves.” ― Eleanor Roosevelt
https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/824275-our-children-must-learn-to-face-full-responsibility-for-their-actions
Just in the midst of re-reading a bit of H.G. Wells' Outline of History, particularly the bit on Aristotle and Greece -- arguably the birth place of democracy -- and some reason there to argue, again, that democracy really only works where there's a single tribe and the responsible "elders" get to chose various courses of group action. Not terribly effective when there are multiple tribes populated by irresponsible and ungovernable heathens -- c.f., Amurika:
Our Tribes and Tribulations; Gathering by the campfire in our ideological tribes, we bask in the warm glow of unchallenged beliefs.
https://quillette.com/2018/02/10/our-tribes-and-tribulations/
Archive: https://archive.ph/CbZjp