Reviewing some of my comments lately, I realize that I have been excruciatingly negative. Nuclear armageddon, environmental catastrophe, mass murder by finance, high-tech totalitarianism, seemingly endless corruption -- it's more than enough to get you down. It's overwhelming, and it had started to consume me until I stepped back from it.
Rather than letting all that gnaw on me, I need to ask myself: What can I do?
Then, whatever the answer is, I need to do that. If saving the world -- at least the good parts of it -- for future generations isn't high on my list of priorities, I don't know what is.
And make no mistake: The world desperately needs saving. We need heroes right now, more so than at any point in human history. The consequences of failure are far too severe. Failure means humanity goes down along with a good chunk of the rest of the biosphere. This is quite literally about saving the world, make no mistake; not just saving America or the starving children, this is about saving the world.
Stare it in the face: Lunatics with nukes and cushy, expansive bunkers deep under the bedrock. Lunatics of the type that shoot people in the face, then extract public apologies from their victims. "Sorry to have impeded your shotgun blast with my face, Master." Shakespeare could not have made this up, and if he had, it would have been a farce, not a historical tragedy.
But it is a historical tragedy -- or it could be. It could also end up being a farce, or a tale of selfless heroes achieving glorious and righteous victories. There is still hope. I'm hoping it turns into a farce with the great Wizard of DZ being defrocked and exposed as the shriveled, pathetic old coot that he is, to the delighted hoots of a wide audience. I'll settle for the hard-won glorious and righteous victory, though.
So what do I need to do? This diary is one small step, I hope. In my personal life, I need to make some small changes: unplug the TV, go to bed earlier, exercise, get a job -- stuff like that. The most important thing for me, though, is simply coming to the realization that the game is not over and it's far from lost. I've got to play with ardour until the sweet end.
White Hats, it's now or never, do or die. Let's give 'em Hell! They deserve no better.