Some days it’s hard not to be discouraged about the state of things. Does anyone else sense that we’re at a terrible impasse? A kind of crux, a turning point, where we’re either going to gather ourselves up and figure out some real solutions to our problems or devolve into something worse than anarchy?
It’s disheartening to hear news reports about mass shootings in churches and trucks driven through crowds on an almost daily basis. And everyone seems to have his or her pet peeve on which we take sides and determine THIS, THIS ONE THING, is the sole cause of all our woes, whether it’s “happy holidays” vs. “Merry Christmas” or illegal drugs, or illegal immigrants, or kneeling football players, or porkbarrel waste in Washington, or... you can fill in the blank with whatever it is that’s got you offended.
Unfortunately, none of the blustering and blathering is accomplishing anything. It’s all just a lot of hot air. When are we going to calm down and actually start developing real, workable solutions?
You may recall the Dr. Seuss story of the North-Going Zax and the South-Going Zax from “Seuss on the Loose.” These creatures who dwell in the Prairie of Prax are stubborn. So stubborn they refuse to go in any direction other than their assigned directions (like conservatives and liberals, perhaps?).
In the book, when the South-Going Zax runs into the North-Going Zax, they’re stuck. They cannot compromise, they cannot solve their problem because they are too stubborn to adapt, to change, or even to see another way, and the world goes on around them, leaving them behind.
Is that where we’re heading as a nation? Are we becoming a nation of Zaxes, stuck in opposition to one another? I hope not. I hope rational, reasonable minds will find the courage to crawl out from behind the rocks where they’ve been hiding from the mud-slinging. If this was an episode of Star Trek (the original series) it’s about to the point in the storyline where Spock steps up, to everyone’s relief, and overrides Captain Kirk’s emotional outbursts and machismo with logic in order to save the Starship Enterprise.
Where are the Spocks of our generation?
Are you an original Star Trek fan, or do you prefer one of the more recent incarnations? Why?
Niki Turner is a novelist, journalist, blogger, and the co-owner and editor of the Rio Blanco Herald Times weekly newspaper. Niki is also the current president of the ACFW CO-Western chapter. Married 27 years to her high school sweetheart, she is the mother of 4 adult children and "Mimi" to 4 grandchildren. She just published her 10th novella. Visit her Amazon author page or follow her on Facebook to find out about her latest releases!
Ohhhh I cannot pick a favorite Spock. That's so hard! I like them both! He's such a good foil to Captain Kirk's swagger.
ReplyDeleteThere was so much wisdom in those Classic ST seasons. who knew? ha ha.
ReplyDeleteThe good of the many outweighs the good of the one is my favorite Spock Quote. Perhaps we need to send Dr. Seuss books to the congress and senate.