Light/Breezes

Light/Breezes
SUNRISE AT DEATH VALLEY-Photo by Tom Cochrun

Friday, June 23, 2017

EXPECTING ORDER

   The linear orderliness of this lovely scene does more than remind me of those summers when I baled hay, though a moment of regression might be helpful.
    We were not paid much and the work was hot and hard, but lunches were amazing. Someone, usually the farmer who had hired us or his wife would bring full picnic baskets and pitchers of lemonade or iced tea to the shade of a tree where we paused. At one farm the basket might be full of fried chicken, heaping on a platter and pies. Or the basket might be full of sandwiches and cookies or pie. We were young, lean, always hungry and able to sweat out a morning, stop and eat like horses and then go back to grabbing the bales with a hay hook as they came off the baler and stacking them on wagons as we bumped our way over a field.
     Order and foundational values were important to us. We'd stack the bales high and they needed to stay in place as we jostled along. They also needed to come off the wagon in order so we could load them onto a conveyor lifting them to a hot, dusty and miserable hayloft where we off loaded and again stacked them neatly where they would summer and winter until the farmer busted them down for livestock.
     The work was honest and we were happy for the pay, no matter what it was. We worked all day, counted on each other and again needed to be orderly in everything we did.  I think about that as I anguish over American politics and government.
        There seems to be no order at work in this era. The Democrats are leaderless and in disarray. The Republicans are shattered, led by the least popular and most unfit president in history. We are in crisis.
        Though they control the House, Senate and White House the fractured, shattered, souless GOP seems intent on suicide. As universally hooted as the House health care plan was, Senate Republicans are retching a version that will also do harm and damage to millions while rewarding the wealthy with a tax cut. And of course they've done it in secret, a place where you sell your soul. It is as though they are giving the Democrats tickets to GOP beheadings, but it is the Democrats after-all. 
        A Democrat party that has its act together could sweep to power in 2018. They don't need to do much, the Trump follies and the sinister dramas of Ryan and McConnell have done and will do immense damage, if people are paying attention. And of course the Democrats need a generational adjustment and a bit of skill. So, given the all the odds there is no safe bet.
     What I am missing most is an explanation from anyone about what we are doing to protect the 2018 election and beyond from further Russian meddling. 
     When and how are we going to get answers from someone in Washington as to
  •   What did the Russian's do?
  •   How extensive was the attack?
  •   Did they affect vote counts or registration?
  •   How did they do it?
  •   How deep have they gone?
  •   What are we doing in a defensive way?
  •   Can someone guarantee it won't happen again?
     The absurdest follies of Washington is distracting, sadly, from the worst attack on America since 9/11, but damned if anyone seems concerned. That is more than worrisome. It is deadly frightening. Thinking Americans, young and old, waver between depression and despondency.
      One does not need to tilt left or right to know our system is in a spasm. We have become dysfunctional and it's annoying because we are used to order and for things to make sense-that has been our history-it is what has set us apart. 
      Now we are learning why "the old folks" used to long for the good old days. I've heard people say even Tricky Dick Nixon sounds good by comparison-now that's frightening!

      See you down the trail

      

       

14 comments:

  1. To some, if buildings don't fall or bombs don't drop, it's, move along, nothing to see here. Big mistake!!! BTW, some good wine just down the road there!!!��

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I agree, it is stunning more people are not upset about the Russian attack.
      And to your point about down the road-Cheers!

      Delete
  2. Is it possible that we've become an ungovernable people, or are we just lacking the leadership we need to pull us back together?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. We've become increasingly fractured and tribalized, but the greatest part of your equation is lack of leadership. It is sorely missing.

      Delete
  3. People like Cory Booker and Al Franken may be the Democrats hope for the future. I think people like Schumer and Pelosi are about done. The Russians did, indeed, meddle in the election but investigators say no votes were changed.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I've been surprised by the Franken ascent. His star does seem to be rising and he is a bright fellow. As for the election hack, the last thing any security or intelligence service would be permitted to discuss is if there was an actual impact on the ballots. Given the powder keg we have become, that would be an acknowledgement that could be devastating. I'm not saying it happened, only pointing out the dire significance which in turn is a case to deny. I think the jury is still out on how deeply the Russians got into some state's voter records and election computers.

      Delete
  4. Nice pictures. I too baled hay as a teen, I remember it being the 'itchyist' work I ever did. Also a cousin letting go of his hay hook as he tossed the bale up to me on the truck and it going through my palm.
    As to the good questions you raise regarding the Russian involvement in our elections.....they don't matter to the GOP, they only have one question: if they are, does it benefit us? If so, it's not a problem.
    Booker and Franken may well be the future, but I don't see the Dems as having any ability to do anything but bicker and lose.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yikes on the hook. Those were mean tools. It is staggering this administration that talks tough are like wimps on the Russian meddle. Curious.
      As for your last point, I hope someone with vision and facility will emerge.

      Delete
  5. If Mueller doesn't get him, the state of New York will. Money laundering, illegal loans, etc.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I figure it will be his "business" and financial entanglements that will take him down.

      Delete
  6. Never worked hay. Drove truck in the hop harvests '68, 69, '70 --always a race against time. Retired from gardening public places in 2009. As one who advanced from field hand to gardener in a mere 40 years, I don't see how my kids avoided living in my shadow but they progressed in their own directions. They went to universities, launched across the country and became indispensable. I wish Trump had been raised like that.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Geo. I'd love to read more of hop harvests and the race against time. I know nothing about that. As for your last remark- AMEN!

    ReplyDelete