March 20, 2017

If you've read EARTHA then you’ve met a few characters who may resemble some very powerful people today. I’ve been asked if I was prescient about our current political circumstances. The answer is "no”. In EARTHA one of the themes I was exploring is our species' tendency to force the world (through power) into a comfy cushion for our ever fattening asses (wealth).

Extreme wealth and power can build you a very comfy cushion indeed, blocking your ears as well, till the only sound you can hear is "More!".

By now we all know the recipe of the typical tyrant: hone your catch phrases and contrived rage, testing them on a willing audience with tribal chants, adding the occasional friendly smile to remind them that you're on their side. If you can throw morality into the mix then so much the better, because your followers are sorely craving some moral sense in this complex world. You don’t need to tell them that you’re feeding the complexity with lies and secret alliances against them. They don’t need to know.

These maneuvers are nothing new. They occur with regularity at all levels of human interaction, from the playground to the pulpit to the chambers of politics. Discussing and analyzing their resurgence is about as useful as marveling at flies at a picnic.

Just start swatting already.