As you are probably aware, there is considerable doubt now about how believable our government is, both because of the individuals now working in certain high offices, as well as because various aspects of the rules, and the ideals, or the way things are currently operating, don't seem to deserve belief any more. And for a government, that's a real problem.
It is most certainly also a very real problem for us.
In the next ten to twenty years it is a virtual certainty (if no corrective measures are taken) that our government will declare a national emergency; invoking all of the emergency powers available to it in a time of national threat. This will happen on the cusp of some obvious event that will be sure to provide reasonable justification; especially if it's shocking enough; to which the media might be brought into depicting more than even they realize. Because that's part of the problem now.
In any case, though, this might actually be precisely what it is claimed it is by the government of the moment. And all of the sacrifices we are asked to make, in rights, in what we can buy when. In how much we are now allowed to earn, or to profit. And conscription itself reinstated. All of these things will be justified.
And whatever the event may be, it is likely, whether it deserves the declaration or not, that it will receive another euphemism of anything but war, even if it is a combination of terrible natural disasters, and conflict from the fallout, or in combination to open hostilities between whatever groups and/or nation states.
The question then is: Will we be able to mobilize? Will we be able to mount cohesive national effort to respond to this urgent need? Or will the suspicions, and dissention prove to be inwardly catastrophic?
And there could certainly be cause for suspicion. A corrupt government, if it is actually corrupt to some degree, in some parts of high office, could do terrible things with emergency powers in place. The conspiracy loving folks among us have had a pretty good run now of imagining devils inside every shadow they see. And the problem there is, of course, that just as paranoids have enemies, delusional conspiracy addicts also have the odd lucky insight (timing and circumstances always being the key -- as even a broken clock is correct twice a day).
But consider this. Even if we assume that, when that day of national emergency occurs, it is for real, and we are locked into whatever the way things ended up as, when this happens, that may well end up being the way it will be from then on; only in that case with a lot more sacrifice continued to be asked of us, for quite a long time indeed, even assuming we survive. How much of the current crazy would that entail? How much more crazy might be added to it in the meantime? How much more inequality of outcomes? How much more of the rest of us, suffering, and dying in the largest numbers because the "emergency" can't afford to pay for lessening any of it. All the while those in power continue to do just fine, even as they learn to be more discrete in allowing us to see it. Or not. But how will we know?
This is just the nature of suspicion you see, and we've been given good reason to be suspicious of late. And how can government fix that when the basic problem is the operating system the government itself operates within?
Of particular import to me, however, is this simple idea: If we accept that a major calamity will occur, requiring national mobilization in any case, why not just declare one ASAP. And do that because we could then have some time to do so, without an actual, specific crisis to contend with. Time that would allow us to fix a thing or two in making the preparations that would also allow us to be more ready for the harder times to come. Be ready so that we can face what is to come because we took the time to effect the changes ourselves so that it could be something we might be actually be able to believe in again.
Just more things to think about now that we are entering a World In Permanent Crisis Mode.
No comments:
Post a Comment