Old and New Thinking

Nearly 500 postings and 20,000 visits have occurred since the beginning of the blog. During that time we have explored many topics. Many are philosophical. Others are political. Still others are cultural, spiritual and poetic.

My passion in life is to be useful to others. Don’t know how I got started on this path but it has long been with me. I strain to accurately understand what is going on around me and what it means for the long term wellness of mankind on this planet. That’s a big picture orientation to be sure. It may seem pie in the sky to some – probably most! But not to me. This makes the most sense to me.

As I watch conflicting points of view used to win power rather than expand understanding, frustration sets in.

Recently our household began viewing all of the West Wing television series. We are currently on episode 92. As we hungrily consume the episodes anew we are reminded of why we were such fans of the series in the first place. West Wing almost perfectly matched our confidence in America’s sense of itself and what it ought to be doing in the world. The issues examined in the fast-paced program mirror the same issues with which we struggle today. If you’d like a refresher course, rent the series from Netflix. You’ll be glad you did.

What we are re-discovering for ourselves is that today’s thinking is old and worn out. We’ve been here before and handled it better. Can’t we cut through the drama and angst and get to the healthy conclusions sooner?  We have the ability. We have more resources. We understand the issues more clearly. Certainly we can set aside our wild lust for power so we can actually do the work of the people?

If you want to understand how the political system works re-watch West Wing. The same parties are playing key roles. The argument for and against big government continue to be mouthed. The nonsense and game playing remain in place. Obstruction of progress and non-resolution of problems continues, as well.

Same-o, same-o. Then West Wing was imitating life. Now one wonders if life is imitating art. After all it is a re-run.

Only thing is, I think we can do better. We’d better do better!

February 28, 2013