I wake up every day with a weird sense of anxiety. I can’t remember a time when so many people hated so many other people for so many reasons. I was too young to really experience the anger of the 60s- the generational wars, Vietnam, the lack of belief in institutions.
Today feels like that…squared. It’s not just America that is fraying at the seams. (I think the racist-anti-science-anti-elite-anti-everything-but-meism has always been there but Trump has legitimized this anger.)
Britain, home of the stiff upper lip and tradition and history, is also a mess. Spain is breaking up. The dream of a united Europe is an illusion.
In many ways, this reminds me of the days before WW1 when there was a kind of seismic shift and all the iffy alliances came apart. Or maybe this is a revolution of unfulfilled expectations- now we know the next generation will not do as well as their parents and the feeling is…what’s the use.
The anger is palpable.
So, we need a common enemy. Humanity needs a reason to forget their petty (and yes, they are petty) differences and to come together. So I am hoping that if there are aliens out there, they will attack now. Then maybe we will get off our collective asses and work together for the common good.
If not, the aliens deserve the planet.
Emme Cross 
Hi Emme,
I feel that global anxiety. Those dear dogs, cats, birds and animals sharing our environment sense the stress and distress. They act and react with distress before humanity even knows there is an issue. We observe their acts of desperation and scratch our heads while asking what is their problem.
It is unfortunate that both WWI and WWII were global threats verging on seismic shifts in the territorial boundaries and economic dominance of power centers. These were horrific events that both unified large sectors of humanity philosophically and created industrial complexes that brought economic growth and stability to all sectors. You have proposed an external threat to unify the global populace and I would pray for a more manageable global focus.
It would do the entire world good to focus on saving the environment for both human beings and the creatures sharing the world with us. Is global warming and destruction not only a real challenge but one which we as a global community can use as inspiration to create a sustainable, less expensive life experience for our future generations. It is so interesting when I go to my closet and rediscover some article of clothing much loved but forgotten. It is like finding something new. Perhaps this is what we should do now as a global community, rediscover the life styles past and long forgotten and position this as the newest most fabulous direction for all our communities.
Reducing carbon footprint may mean giving up automobiles. I enjoy ease of transportation as much as the next person. I love the search for the next best automobile. I also enjoy horse back riding and the search for the connection with a noble animal that has carried humanity throughout the centuries without negative impact on the environment. Certainly, if I must choose between fuel to heat the small space which I occupy versus the auto for transportation, I choose heat in the winter.
Perhaps we should get back to our agricultural roots both here and abroad. I hear this is called “living off-grid”. The grid refers to the hydro electricity complex. The politicians, lawyers and purveyors of hydro have made it illegal to “live off-grid”. The police have been sent in to country communities to search out and put those people in jail who do not have hydro lines servicing their properties anywhere in Canada. How silly and sad. We should venerate the farmers and fishermen who put grain, fruit and vegetables on our plates. Eskimos, now known as Inuit, had smaller communities bound by simple codes based on survival. Everyone within the unit was understood intimately and deeply. Each person had a role and a function. Damage to the community was met with exclusion and that meant death in the far north. I wonder how lawyers would fair of course…..
It we must endure a seismic shift in our cultural orientations, may I suggest that we reach down to our kinder, gentler and more inclusive selves internationally. Let us find the nobility in humanity instead of giving in to the brutality. I do pray for us all and quietly work on that sustainable model.
Yours sincerely,
Lesley
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