Gratefulness

The birds are chirping, the sun is out, and tomorrow is Father's Day. In this moment, I am happy. Even doing something as seemingly mindless as watching lavender incense burn and its ashes dropping as the fire takes its course downward is satisfying. With all the cynicism and pressure to constantly move forward abound in my life these days (and they seem to compound as I grow older), it's hard to remember that being happy is not difficult. But it only is true if you genuinely believe in it. I am reminded of a quote by David Rothkopf: "Our triumphs are all that much greater because they are not only victories over our enemies but also over ourselves."--Running the World

Speak Softly and Share the Big Stick

“We have moved from the cold war era of bipolar reality through the brief bubble of sole superpower unilateral fantasy into a world of a new multipowered system which requires old-fashioned balance-of-power diplomacy,” Mr. Rothkopf said. The result, he said, may be that “all of a sudden, the old cobweb-infested State Department is more important than it’s been in many, many years.”
--David Rothkopf, author of Running the World: The Inside Story of the National Security Council and the Architects of American Power, in a recent New York Times article

I wonder what American society will be like if in our lifetime the authority of the most powerful country in the world dissolves. The what-says-what-goes attitude of the US has fostered a society of people who can afford to not preoccupy themselves with foreign affairs and be educated about global issues. Can we ordinary Americans afford to be ignorant about issues outside of our borders--issues that are integral to our country's welfare--the day we're no longer the hegemon of the pecking order? Two things might happen. One is that there will increasingly be a discord between what the American public wants, i.e. demands made on the domestic level, and what the US needs to do on the international front. It's undeniable that American unilateralism is being increasingly challenged, whether it's from push or pull factors. This could very well make multilateralism the most viable way of conducting diplomacy in the foreseeable future, especially if the US is looking to slow down the ability for unilateral decision-making by a few other unnamed rising powers in the world. So then what? What if the public doesn't enjoy this seemingly compromising way of the US managing international affairs, especially if it may adversely affect the economic and socio-political situation at home?
The other thing that might happen is it may compel a generation of Americans to become interested in international affairs. Maybe we'll start asking questions, become interested in world history, educate ourselves on what past and present US foreign policy has been..we'll start talking about these things and caring...and maybe then the local media won't relegate foreign affairs news to a 2 minute clip or a blurb. It'll be...a revolution! Probably? Maybe? Perhaps?

I'm devastated that the New York Times is going to require a paid subscription for its services next year. Where am I going to turn to for free, informative, unabashedly liberal-slanting news? I don't want to read things outside of my worldview--it's a highly discomfiting feeling.