In the middle of one of my earlier political blog fasts, I discovered financial blogs. Hah! Now I have a new addiction.
It’s just as bad as the other one, and anyone who says “I can take it” simply shouldn’t be trusted. Note that I haven’t declared that, but don’t trust this anyway. Seriously. Not the actual financial details, which fall into the category of taking someone else’s word for it. In fact, the only reason for risking psycho-emotional collateral damage by mentioning this at all is that it could be part of something bigger and, well, better. If not that, then we’ll just call this an entertaining yarn and move along.
I suppose you know the gist of what’s going on. Basically, key sectors of the banking system are essentially insolvent, and so are the bond insurers. Everyone’s pretending not to notice, since there isn’t any way to fix it. There isn’t any way to fix it, because we won’t know how bad it is until the lying plutocratic swine have locked the doors and run away — right now, they only have the shades pulled down. Worse yet, it’s an election year.
There could be high holy hell to pay for some. I hope not, because I could be one of them. But at the very least, the next few years could knock a lot of nasty operators out of business, at least the stupid ones, and maybe even a couple of evil empires. I submit that this is part of an overall Good Thing that’s underway.
I’m seeing more signs of it everywhere. On the one hand, we have the Bush administration out to kill the whales. On the other, I met a young fellow the other day, late 20s maybe, who was strong and real and had the fire of love for Nature in his eyes. It was startling and true. I’ve seen a lot of these dudes, and women too. That tells me everything I need to know. One way or the other — perceptual shift or bludgeoning — we’re “going back” to the Garden of Eden. I’ve been waiting for this for years, and what is there to lose?
Well, attachment, for one thing…
Earlier this evening my wife was wishing we’d kept a certain framed poster instead of giving it away when we moved. It was the one thing she regretted not taking most. I sympathized, but regret will eat you up and kill you dead. I know, because I’ve murdered myself a million times or so. The other night I boiled at least a cup of stomach acid bemoaning the misuse of our old Dutch oven, its heavy cast iron body turned to slag and rust in service as a stove humidifier. Is that insane or what? I know where this comes from, this kind of regret. On a personal emotional level, it has to do with fear. Fear of not having enough. Fear that I’d never have another fifty stinking bucks to buy another one. Fear that I’m not good enough. Fear that I didn’t do right and won’t be loved, crime and punishment in a bundle if I accept delivery. But what if I don’t?
You can’t take it with you, as the saying goes. Lately I find the old saw has liberating wisdom. Whenever I find myself regretting what I no longer have (or think I never will), I tell myself I have to leave it all behind in any case, so what’s the point of hanging on? I said something like this to my wife about the poster. She glared hard at me and said:
“I’m not AT THAT POINT yet!”
No, you’re not, sweetheart, and neither am I. It’s a comforting thought, though, and this is what I’m getting at.
No related posts.
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
I have doubts as to whether I should post this, but here goes…
First point, on financials. You are missing a part of the picture. Bank of America is planning to buy Countrywide. That move is highly anti-competitive and will give BofA a HUGE chunk of the overall mortgage business. This merger would probably NOT be approved by any other Administration and probably not even Bush’s if it weren’t for the mess the credit side of the economy is in. Rebuiliding old monopolies…..
Second point, on Mike Huckabee. Here’s a comment he made on Monday that gives me a bad case of the willies:
“I have opponents in this race who do not want to change the Constitution,” Huckabee told a Michigan audience on Monday. “But I believe it’s a lot easier to change the Constitution than it would be to change the word of the living god. And that’s what we need to do — to amend the Constitution so it’s in God’s standards rather than try to change God’s standards so it lines up with some contemporary view.”
Okay, that’s enough Cassandra for today.
John Lay
Hell, no reason not to post that!
Please have a look at the post immediately above, about the Eisenstein article. I think the trick here is to understand that all the horrible stuff is part of the solution… We’re not going to end up with life as we know it, only in a version that’s fair, ecological, etc. with liberty and justice for all. That’s GONE. We’re heading for something completely different, based on a new understanding of self.
Garden of Eden, man. No more separation.