by Scott Sehnert, Sartell
“We have now sunk to a depth at which restatement of the obvious is the first duty of intelligent men.” It has been many, many years since George Orwell uttered that phrase. In the decades hence, we have sunk to even lower depths and at present seem to be sinking fast. After all, his were the days when running in the hallway and chewing gum in class were the most grievous of school-day offenses.
Faith, hope and charity. Indeed, a virtuous triumvirate. I am a faith-filled being with a developing sense of charity. However, my three-legged stool keeps throwing me to the ground for lack of hope. We are now mercifully nearing the end of our three-year and 363-day campaign for the office of president of the United States. Thanks to the insatiable ratings lust of cable television, the 2016 race began two days after Mitt Romney phoned President Obama with his not-heartfelt congratulations.
At first, it was months of either hand-wringing or euphoria over the just-completed marathon. Then, one by one (by one, by one, by one) the would-be new combatants began to position themselves. Sometimes coyly, for example stating “I am absolutely not running.” Sometimes with the stealth of a yeti walking a bed of nails, for example by resigning from their cable-affiliated television program.
One by one they arrived at that heralded moment when they would present themselves to a breathless nation as desiring consideration for the position of leader of the free world. Perhaps you experienced “the same electric thrill I once enjoyed when Santorum, Gilmore, Pataki and O’Malley all came to town on the very same historic day!!” (My apologies here to Meredith Wilson and anyone who has ever watched or participated in The Music Man.) But, alas, despite the bravado of their entrance, nearly all have now slunk from the stage. How we will miss their well-thought-out solutions, insightful direction and creative vision. Or, are we just saddened by the fact that now to watch adults fight like spoiled adolescents it will only be available to us on pay-per-view.
There are so many sadly amusing aspects of this whole process. A couple of my personal favorites are as follows. It’s interesting to see how many love to tie their dinghy to the Reagan luxury liner. Yes, they were there fighting shoulder to shoulder with Ron throughout the glorious 80s. I wouldn’t be surprised to find their names included in the roll of credits following the end of Bedtime for Bonzo. Another is the fact they were also all there with Gingrich and the Gang during the glorious 90s when the budget was “balanced.” It’s kind of like the 100,000 that claim they were there the night Wilt Chamberlin scored 100 points in a game. Problem is the arena only held a fraction of that number.
Don’t worry folks, the budget was never balanced anyway. That myth is the creation of some of the greatest book-cooking ever undertaken – and all that while the economy was indeed roaring like a freight train. Anyway, what does balancing the budget mean? We didn’t go any further into debt for a year or two. Consider that currently the national debt is placed at around $19 trillion (we won’t mention unfunded mandates because nobody really knows what that means). Here is a mind-boggling set of numbers: 1,000 seconds equals 16.5 minutes/1 million seconds equals 11.5 days/1 billion seconds equals 31 years/1 trillion seconds equals 31,000 years!
You think any of the current crop of candidates or anyone else is ever going to have a chance to solve our little debt problem? Not while we deal with this almost inescapable equation – money plus power plus human nature equal corruption. It’s worldwide. In the meantime, we are going to build a fence, defeat every foe, prevent every massacre, all while giving free health care and free education to all.
At the conclusion of his first day in what would become known as the White House, President John Adams sat at his candlelit desk and penned these words as a benediction of a letter to his wife Abigail: “I pray heaven to bestow the best of blessings on this house and all that shall hereafter inhabit it. May none but honest and wise men ever rule under this roof.”
As the pot of candidates boils down to the final two, it looks like the second half of Mr. Adams’ wish will go unfulfilled. On the one side we have one of the most disingenuous and dishonest human beings to ever draw a breath and on the other side we have the clown, and a nasty clown at that. Honest and wise? Not this time around. So what about the first half of his wish – pray, heaven and blessings. This country achieved greatness when it had the foundational faith of our Founding Fathers. Oh, there were plenty of faithless, even egregious, folks along for the ride but primarily we were a nation devoted to God.
Today the most likely result of marriage is divorce. What used to be the most likely result of marriage, children, is now conceived mostly outside of the bounds of marriage. Heck, we are not even sure how to define marriage. The entertainment airwaves either handheld or beaming from the wall of your living room are filled with mindless drivel that will never nourish great minds. As a result we rank near the bottom in every worldwide scholastic measurement.
Pornography is a plague. Don’t underestimate this catastrophe. It’s eating away at our moral character faster than Miss Pacman eats dots. Our houses of worship fill on Christmas, Easter and for several weeks after large skyscrapers are destroyed by terrorists. Other than that, there are plenty of seats available.
The list of what is wrong with the country is lengthy. The idea that one group or another of elected officials can bring the needed healing is preposterous. Yes, we need leaders or there would be worse chaos. So please, vote. Vote your conscience, vote your heart, vote your mind. But in the end, if you would be part of raising the country from the lower depths, elect to work hard, be a peacemaker, be honest, be caring, be patient, be loving, be long-suffering, be friendly, be tolerant, and be sorry and try to improve when you aren’t so. Indeed, look in the mirror and “choose ye this day whom you will serve.”
Most running for office or currently serving will often close their comments with “God bless America.” I believe God will bless America when America puts itself in a position to be blessed. In my view, this is restating the obvious.
