The Bedrock of Compromise

It pays to remind ourselves from time to time that even our most firmly-held principles and beliefs tend to be littered with shades of grey.  Or, at the very least, the rationale upon which we base our firmly-held beliefs typically is an exercise in compromised "principles" and/or not-so-stable bedrock beliefs.

If we regularly acknowledged we live a life of constant compromise, and acknowledged compromise can be extremely valuable to the greater good, we would be less likely to draw lines in the sand.  And, as we know, sand shifts.

Take, for example, my belief that society has an obligation to provide a social safety net for its members.  The Social Security system is an example of that belief put into practice.  So is Medicare.  But the belief in society's obligation to its own citizens is not black and white.  There is an every-present dilemma over how much society owes it citizens.  How much is "enough" to ensure a decent quality of life in retirement?  What about someone who did not contribute to Social Security?  What about the very wealthy who contributed, but do not need it...but get it anyway?  People like me, who believe deeply in society's obligation to look out after its own, tend to believe the state should provide some base-level of support...but even I, who tend to be rather far to the left on such matters, acknowledge there's a moving target as to what is practical and reasonable in the context of our economic condition at any given time.

Were I to draw a line in the sand and say, unequivocally, "society must always, without fail, take care of its citizens who cannot take care of themselves," it would be necessary for me to make some value judgments about the level at which an individual is judged to be unable to "take care of himself."  Does covering the cost of cable TV come into the equation?  How about life-saving medications?  Rent?  In what kind of home or apartment?  In what city?  Where does one look to find the definitive baseline for support in the case of someone "in need?"

To find some reasonable level of state support, one must examine a host of factors and come to some decision as to what is reasonable, what is practical, and what will be acceptable to sufficient numbers of us in our society so the support can be provided.  And we must be aware of the nature of our society; it's in constant flux.  We should acknowledge that and be very careful about making "promises" to our citizens about what we will, or can, do.  All of us should understand we cannot take governmental "promises" at face value.  No matter how much we may want those promises to be carved in stone, it pays to remember that stone is etched and eroded over time by the elements.

Looking to the other end of the political spectrum, there are those who believe the United States must have a strong defense. While I may or not agree that significant expenditures are needed to keep our military in competitive condition, there's compromise brewing on both ends of the argument.  At what point does my pacificism accept the need to protect ourselves from attack?  At what point, conversely, does the damage to our reputation as "leader" done by our aggressive or militaristic stance give way to the practicalities called for if we wish to live in a world in which we are not the perpetual target of the less fortunate?

The fact that my cognition has been dulled by a rather nice Torrontes does not nullify the legitimacy of my unswerving advocacy for compromise.

The vote in New York to legitimize same-sex marriage was a huge success for gays and people who simply believe one's sexual orientation is no business of the state.  But it was a crushing defeat for those who look at the decision as an open door to yet more illegitimate state expenditures for medical care, etc. for people who are married to their own kind.

Compromise, people!  Left is not always right and right is not always wrong!  For Christ's sake, just be willing to get off your holier-than-thou throne on occasion and THINK instead of simply FEELING!

I am becoming more and more convinced that the people we elect to office should be absolutely apolitical.  That way, their decisions are apt to be based on the facts and logic, as opposed to their abusive Catholic youths or hard-drinking atheist mothers.

Listen to the Light

Come forth into the light of things.

Let nature be your teacher.

~William Wordsworth~

Sanctuary

Within yourself is a stillness and a sanctuary to which you can retreat at any time and be yourself.

Herman Hesse 

Incomparable

I try to pry myself out of a depression by considering how my problem pale in comparison to dealing with terminal cancer or dealing with genocide.  But it must makes me feel worse when thinking of those horrors does not make my problems shrink into nothing.

Question Everything

Believe nothing, no matter where you read it or who has said it, not even if I have said it, unless it agrees with your own reason and your own common sense.


 – Buddha

Wishes

I think we're all afraid.  We fear not knowing something profound, thinking there is a mysterious secret that we're missing.  Religion has found the answer, yet it hasn't revealed it to us, not quite.  Unless, of course, one buys into the blind faith that overshadows that fear with an irrational belief in magic.  But most people, I believe, don't really think there is really an "answer." At least they don't understand it.  And they're afraid that they just don't "get" it.  Well, they don't.  There's nothing to get.

We wish for things that are not and will not be.  That is as it has always been.

Beyond Words

The solitude of an early morning appeals to me.  Perhaps solitude, alone, appeals to me.  But the mix of solitude and an early morning is food for my soul.  I love the time before the sun shoves the darkness into the corners of drawers and gives me just a hint of what's to be.  Early, pre-light morning and I have an intimate relationship that goes deep.

Early morning and me.  We are alike in so many ways.  We are more private than we admit.  We have no secrets, but we don't tell all without a reason. We find comfort in one another's company.  Our love is beyond words.