We are all connected these days.
Global economies, global social networks, global environments, global networks.
So, when a tremendous force such as the recent earthquake in Japan and resulting tsunamis occur, the shockwaves reverberate, gather energy and reach around the Ring of Fire which encircles the Pacific Ocean. At some point, the energy dissipates, but the landscape is never the same. Neither is the sense of security for that generation. People have short memories.
The TeaPartee movement also seems to be generating its own misshapen energy force and as this disparate group of the disaffected, the nihilists, the anti-governmental wing, the older conservatives, the racists (yes, there I said it) and the fearful emerged and coalesced without leadership following the election of Obama, that vacuum of leadership was ripe for the taking.
The recent events in Madison and other statehouses to privatize (eg, monetize) governmental functions is the result of leadership filling that vacuum behind the scenes. The end goal is commerce and power; the losers are the vaporizing middle class and the already downtrodden. The aftershocks are about to commence. Strap in and speak up. Yes, most states are in a boatload of troubles that will require draconian measures to right the ships of state. But there must be a rational way to make it through these economic tsunamis without destroying the middle class or turning a service model into a commerce giveaway (no-bid contracts, cronyism etc).
Even if recalls and elections turn out the scoundrels, the damage may have already be done. Be careful when you invoke the tectonic forces. The landscape may never be the same and may be altered in ways you never intended.
Today's Song Saturday pick:
That Man in Black and "Ring of Fire;" some forces never die or fade away.
