Some Final Thoughts For 2012

Some Final Thoughts For 2012

1. I believe, when it comes right down to it, that human beings are inherently good and nonviolent by inclination. When you look around, that's definitely an optimistic view. We had a bad year. War continues, more mass shootings, including children, of all things, people throwing others in front of subway cars because of their skin color, the NRA suggesting we put armed guards in all our schools. It can all get disheartening. With the good and responsible, there is always the bad and irresponsible. It can't be any other way. We have to learn from our mistakes, not make further one's.
2. I continue to believe you cannot kill and expect good to come of it.
3. I still don't think foreign terrorists are the most dangerous people we have to worry about. Congress, the Supreme Court, and an ever growing military-industrial complex are much scarier to me. 
4. I don't think the people in Washington are working for our benefit. They can't seem to figure out anything. We have a Democratic President, a Democratic Senate, and a right-wing dominated House that stops everything. That ain't right.
5. Capitalism is becoming more and more troubling. It does not match up well with democracy. Greed and an insatiable thirst for profit undermines an economic system on the brink of collapse. The rich keep getting richer and the poor keep getting poorer, and we act like there is nothing we can do about it.
6. We need to all take an interest in what is happening. The alchemist's job is to stir the pot, hoping to turn the status quo into chaos, allowing something better to emerge. Nothing good ever comes out of sitting on your ass all day moaning about how bad things are.
7. We continue to have no universal health-care system, and fighting in wars that are senseless and ill-conceived. We cannot make any decisions about the economy, what to do about global warming, or how to protect our children or ourselves from harm. We have a right-wing Supreme Court, continue to elect the same yahoo's to represent us, and continue to sell guns and arm idiotic people how think guns will protect us. All in all, we have a lot of improvements to make in 2013.
8. Still, I believe common-sense can prevail. We can right this ship, if we so choose. It will take compromise, compassion, a willingness to be flexible and creative in our problem solving, and will require an unwavering commitment to making the world a better place to live for our children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.