DECEMBER. It’s a month of significance for a lot of us. It is the time of the year of thoughts of another year past. I don’t know you, but for me, this time around is not like any other December. Could it be that I have ended three-quarters of life and now heading to the final quarter that will likely be the last? Of course, I have thought of relevance and legacy, themes I have written before ( “ Towards a Lasting Legacy” https://www.balita.ca/towards-a-lasting-legacy/ ), but it’s a lot more than that.
The two-year COVID pandemic took our breath away, literally, for many of our dear departed family and friends. Families were cut short in unexpected ways. We never felt as vulnerable before. COVID likely triggered a considerable chunk of humanity’s uncertainty; a minor cough or sniffle could trigger hostility in the early months of this scourge. I direct a sneeze to my ears to avoid offending anybody—suspicious eyes still.
To put the finger on COVID for all the ills in the last couple of years is simplifying a more circuitous problem. Climate change is another villain ( read: “ https://www.balita.ca/the-climate-crisis/
https://www.balita.ca/the-climate-crisis-2/ “) that has given us reason to be ambivalent about the future like never before.
As well, social media and politics have conspired, which made us angrier and more divided. The abortion debate, Asian hate, antisemitism, and homophobia dominate the news. Kyrie Irving, Kanye West, Dave Chapell, Freeze Corleone and their antisemitic pronouncements are in the news lately. Racism has once again reared its ugly head.
Conspiracy theories ( read: https://www.balita.ca/conspiracy-theories/ ) have given rise to Alex Jones, Fox News, QAnon and Election Deniers, culminating in the Jan. 6 attempted coup. Donald Trump continues his relentless assault on the truth. Mass shootings and the Ukrainian war further create a bleak picture of our world.
All these remind me of that TV ad: an old man holding a sign that says: “ The Signs are All Around Us,” alluding to the End of the World. It is a rhetorical flourish, alright; we have this end-of-the-world b.s. every few years, promoted by fear-mongering, bible-thumping nitwits. But, as an existentialist, meaning and purpose are what we make it to be, not one given by a God, government or other authorities.
WHEN ( U.S. )TOXIC FUMES RISE, CANADA IS THE LIKELY DESTINATION, BUT…
Canada fought hard not to fall victim to the US dysfunction. First, by passing gun control legislation. Among others, owning a legal handgun in this country is nearly impossible. This one move alone has prevented the senseless mass slaughter so very ordinary in the US. ( nearly 100 mass shooting since Sept. )
The US-style “ Freedom Convoy “ undercover for supposedly anti-covid mandates became an anarchical manifestation of a hidden agenda, causing significant disruptions in Ottawa and blocking transport in Windsor and Coutts, Alta. The Ottawa spectacle could have deteriorated into a Jan. 6-style insurrection, but the government countered by invoking Emergency Act legislation putting an end to it.
Canadians are massively Pro-Choice at 86% ( US adults, 55% ). Every political party espouses Pro-Choice, even the PCs. Seven years ago, Harper’s PCs ( 2006-2015 ) was Pro-Life.
U.S. News 2021, in their Best Countries Report, gave Canada a score of 96.7 /100 for safety, significantly above the US at 10.8 and the UK at 55.4
There are other reasons to be optimistic that we have reached an inflection point. Here’s why:
Donald Trump, the source of so much misinformation, uncertainty, and weariness in government ( one that has migrated to Canada and around the world ), has met his match. By his own account, a “Stable Genius” ( more like a Stable Moron ), just 39% of voters viewed him favourably. The results of mid-term elections are proof of that. Americans ( and international establishments ) have had enough of this fool.
Even as he announced another run for the WH, he again riddled it with lies and disinformation ( sample: speaking about climate change, he says, “ the oceans will rise 1/8th of an inch in 300 years “. Reality: oceans will rise 11 inches in 30 years! ). A lech ( He once asked,” Is it wrong to be more sexually attracted to your daughter than your wife? or on tape saying: “When you are a star, you can grab them by the pussy!” ) and a pathological liar that brings a collective groan every time he speaks. Die-hard supporters are either not paying attention or lack the humility to admit supporting a loser. Sanity over chaos is how voters have characterized their choices.
COVID is on the ropes. It’s not eliminated ( viruses can never be irradicated entirely), but science, once again, is triumphant. Despite 6.61 M deaths worldwide ( 1.07 M in the US and 47, 286 in Canada ), it never came close to the Flu pandemic of 1918 death toll of 50 M.
COP 27 is the latest in the world’s attempt to wrestle with climate change. Alternative fuels led by a surge in wind and solar-generated power are promising. In addition, they passed an agreement of “Loss and Damages” fund to help countries most affected by climate change.
The Teslas are multiplying like rabbits. Every car manufacturer has its own EV, and some have declared an end to gas engines in 10 years. Progress in battery technology is key to more applications in the future. Unrelated but significant is the election of Lula Da Silva, the newly elected president of Brazil, a staunch protector of the Amazon vows a stop to its destruction.
Social Media, the messenger of hate, disinformation, ideological radicalization and extremism, is on the outs. Twitter is laying off nearly 50% of its employees, and Facebook , 13% reduction of its workforce. As profitability has decreased, Instagram and What’s App are also in a cost-cutting strategy. Young people use YouTube ( 95%), TikTok and Snapchat much more than Facebook and Twitter, now seen as outlets for the old.
Now that Ringmaster and Town Crier Trump is severely diminished, talk of “Fake News” ( in the 1930s, the Nazis called it “Lugenpresse” or Lying Press ) and labelling the press as the “Enemy of the People” have considerably died down. Demonization of the Washington Post, New York Times and CNN, Trump’s favourite punching bags, is decidedly back in favour again. Fox News is “sheltering in place.”
Outside of geo-political and contemporary issues, secularization continues unabated. Religion, even in Theocracies, like Iran, has seen a transformation like never before. Muslim women are out on the streets, burning their hijabs, cutting their hair and openly calling for the Mullah’s overthrow. In the US ( well behind western and northern Europe), weekly church attendance is down to 26%, and Pro-Choice (pro-abortion) among women is 61% in all or most cases. It’s much higher @ 71% among the 18 to 29 age group. The most notable development in Canada is Bill 21, the Secularism Law in Quebec and the federal MAID law ( Medical Assistance In Dying ), Bill C14, passed in 2016. No organized, mainstream religion is in support of either.
To be sure, the inflection point of secularism started in the 17th century, following political tyranny sanctified by Roman Catholicism and followed by a “period of maniacal confessional conflict set off by the Protestant Reformation.” Today, many are unaware that the UK is the fourth most secular country in the world at 69% ( China is first at 90% ), Canada at 34.6%, up from 16.5% in 2001!
RELIGION: AN EXISTENTIAL THREAT TO OUR WELL-BEING.
Christmas and December are synonymous. The Philippines is well known to be the country that celebrates it for a third of the year, in the “ber” months starting in
September through December. The malls start playing Christmas tunes in Sept., and in October, coloured lights and “parols” start showing up. In November, our town is ablaze with everything Christmas. In December, there is carolling from starving artists to groups of children looking for some cash. The big guys, such as seminarians and organized church choirs, schedule their “performances” to select residences to raise funds for the church. When Christmas trees and Santa Claus started dominating the Manger, the most secular countries took it as a universal holiday.
From the moment I became aware of the church’s role in the mid-fifties and all through the 60s in the close-knit town of my birth, the church was the pulse of the community. There was no separation of politics and religion; politics deferred to the church’s wishes. But In retrospect, the assurance provided by church rituals and liturgy, year in and year out, were the seeds of our diffidence, our unenlightened and retrogressive approach to life. Certainty of conviction does not equal a life well lived.
We misread stability and constancy as our lifelong ticket to progress. Religion is all about fear and suppression. A big “shish,” a constant creator of self-doubt and guilt, throwing roadblocks to our creativity and self-expression. Any hopes of generational changes are quickly dashed with a deep-rooted dynastical leadership running the country. Along with a religious stranglehold, we will see ourselves consistently ranked at the bottom of our ASEAN brothers for a long time to come.
Of course, we are all differently affected by this predicament, just as towns and regions are. The big metropolises can “survive” this blight better than the disconnected hinterlands. Individually, the more comfortable among us can indulge in whatever; the future of the country is the furthest thing in their minds. Alas, this “fatal attraction” for the homeland is now well known as a significant cause of our perennially diminishing returns.
The constant refrain that “Life is Too Short,” one that gets louder in our senior years, should be a wake-up call to put our priorities in order. 90% of people on their deathbeds die with regrets. Bronnie Ware, a palliative worker, in her book, “The Top Five Regrets of the Dying,” details the following:
- “I wish I’d had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.”
- “I wish I hadn’t worked so hard.”
- “I wish I’d had the courage to express my feelings.”
- “I wish I had stayed in touch with my friends.”
- “I wish that I had let myself be happier.”
The second paragraph of “My Way” could be an appropriate anthem for some of us:
“Regrets, I’ve had a few / But then again too few to mention / I did what I had to do /
I saw it through without exemption / I planned each charted course / Each careful step along the byway / And more, much more than this / I did it my way.”
HAPPY HOLIDAYS!
