equality and justice – Wanderlust and Wonderment

Posted on December 28, 2020December 28, 2020 by amoralegria · 3 Comments

SYW: Good Riddance to 2020, and the State of the Nation

SHARE YOUR WORLD 12-28-2020 – Melanie’s last Share Your World of 2020!

Pick three words to describe this past year. (please keep them PG. Thanks).
frustrating, appalling, anger-inducing

What were the best books you read this year? Or the best movie you saw?
The best books I’ve read this year are not new: I don’t normally read Stephen King, but I loved the novel 11/22/63 which I read for a book group. Other than that, I have read a lot of novels written in the 1990s set in ancient Egypt. Historical fiction is my favorite genre and right now I’m kind of obsessed with ancient Egypt. All the books written by Pauline Gedge are excellent. I also read some political books, including Mary Trump’s book about her uncle: Too Much and Never Enough: How My Family Created the World’s Most Dangerous Man. Once I’d read that I could predict how Trump would react to losing reelection – he wouldn’t and doesn’t accept it! But the best political/social non-fiction book I read this year was Caste by Isabel Wilkerson. I highly recommend it.

One of the best movies I saw was on Netflix, Social Dilemma – it’s fairly new, and I encourage everyone to see it. You’ll never look at Facebook the same way again! I don’t see too many movies, unfortunately. I saw some old ones that either I never saw before or wanted to see again such as Out of Africa (somewhat of a disappointment) and Dr. Zhivago (because I just finished the novel The Secrets We Kept about smuggling the manuscript of the novel by Boris Pasternak out of the Soviet Union). I enjoyed seeing Dr. Zhivago again, although the copy we got from the library had a lot of scratches. A lot of what I watch are news shows and videos we watch on our community broadcasting channels. Also PBS series such as Nova and Masterpiece.

Because there was lots of time for looking inward, what is one big personal lesson you learned this past year?
Perseverance – the pandemic has lasted longer than perhaps it should have due to mismanagement and lack of leadership. What galls me is how people just drag it on longer by refusing to wear masks (see answer to the next question). I have persevered by accepting what is. I don’t like wearing a mask any more than anyone else; I don’t like not being able to go out with my friends; I especially don’t like not being able to travel – but it’s what we have to do to stay healthy! I’ve read a lot of books and worked on my artwork, and have tried to take a walk every day that has weather I can tolerate.

Another lesson is gratitude: being grateful for the blessings I have, appreciative of people who put their lives on the line to save others, and not taking anything for granted. I see happiness in small things: reading a good book, watching flowers bloom, and baby chicks grow. Nature continues on as usual.

Do you think Covid has strengthened or weakened societal bonds?
I would love to say strengthened, and I think on an individual level, that may be true: developing or solidifying relationships, appreciating the different jobs people do that may put their lives in danger during a pandemic, and working together to solve problems. But societally, our country is even more divided. I am somewhat surprised at this. I am surprised that in spite of the federal government’s terrible handling of the pandemic, over 70 million people in this country voted to reelect Trump! Fortunately they did not prevail, but I am appalled at how people have protested the dumbest things, such as wearing masks as an infringement on their freedom. Sorry, but their freedom ends where the next person’s begins so they need to take some responsibility for their behavior and not infect other people when they leave their home! And the denial of science – there are still people who are sick with Covid, go to the hospital and when told the diagnosis, deny it and say it’s a hoax! Why don’t some people believe doctors and nurses who put their lives on the line to save others? It’s all become politicized and it didn’t have to be. Trump and his Republican lackeys politicized it, instead of helping to unify the people of this country in combatting it.

It’s really shaken my confidence in the citizenry of this nation as supporting democracy and our values, such as stewardship, responsibility, and compassion. It’s also made me fear we can no longer have a dialogue – there are alternate messages of what is truth. How can one dialogue with a person that doesn’t share the same reality?

What is a New Year’s Wish You’d Like To Share With the World?

May 2021 give us 2020 hindsight and may the new year bring us the light at the end of the tunnel!

Posted on November 9, 2020November 9, 2020 by amoralegria · 2 Comments

SYW: On Zoos, Good vs Bad Surprises, Killing, & Nature

Monday means Melanie’s Share Your World!

Questions:

Do you like or dislike surprises? Why or why not?
It depends on what kind of surprise it is. If it’s a Christmas or birthday gift, yes, I like surprises. I like the surprise of my husband getting me flowers for Mother’s Day.

Some surprises are not fun, though…the 2016 election, for example, was a very nasty surprise – and more so because we were on an airplane during the election returns, and heard the news of Trump’s victory from a fellow passenger when we landed in São Paulo – it kind of put a damper on our vacation. Another “surprise” might be finding out that my mammogram showed a mass, or to test positive for Covid-19. Those kinds of surprises I DON’T like!
What’s your favorite zoo animal?
This is a hard one for me…a few years ago I wrote a post about zoochosis, which is used to describe animals’ repetitive behaviors in captivity. For example, a leopard or a cheetah that repetitively paces the perimeter of its enclosure is suffering from zoochosis, meaning it is bored and frustrated with being cooped up. Zoos are much better these days about giving animals space and observing the animals for such behaviors, a sign that they are not healthy and intervention is needed.

In other words, my “favorite” zoo animal (animal in captivity) is difficult to name. After going on a safari in Tanzania in 2018, I resolved not to ever go to a zoo again. Of course, I’ve gotten over it and have been to zoos a few times since then.

I like the big animals, especially the big cats (or small wild cats), giraffes, and elephants. However, I prefer to see them in their native environment. Often when I’m at the zoo, these animals are asleep. When we went to the San Diego Zoo in 2017, I wanted to see the koalas, because the Chicago zoos don’t have koalas, or at least you can’t see them close up. At the San Diego Zoo, there’s a platform so you can see the koalas right in front of you while they are up in a eucalyptus tree – that is, in fact, where they spend most of their time. Seeing them close up was quite a treat! I also like to watch the monkeys – they don’t seem to be bothered with their artificial environment and it’s fun to observe their antics!

What three things do you think of the most each day?
What I’m going to do that day, what I’m going to eat that day, and what the weather is like – i.e. can I go out for a walk or read sitting on the porch? (I have such a hard life – can’t you tell?? ;-D )

Because of Covid-19, we select what we want to eat from a weekly menu and it gets delivered to our house, so I have to look at what I wrote down that I’m having for dinner that day. Knowing what I chose for dinner that day helps me decide what to eat for lunch.

Some days I just want to spend a lot of time reading, while other days I prefer to work on a photo book on Shutterfly or blog. Sometimes I’m in the mood for watching something on TV. I think a lot about being organized and putting my scheduled activities in my calendar because I often forget something and plan something else for the same time.

‘Deep’ Question

4. When, if ever, is taking a human life justified?
In self-defense (when one’s life or loved one’s life is threatened) – this may seem broad, because some people consider “threatened” to be when someone walks on their lawn or comes up to their house and rings the doorbell. I do not think it is justified in such circumstances. In the last several months, police brutality toward Black people has been in the forefront of people’s minds, because of the unnecessary deaths of George Floyd and Brionna Taylor, among others. These cops were not being threatened. They just abused their power and should be prosecuted.

Sometimes a person may feel threatened due to past circumstances, such as a woman whose husband has been abusive toward her or her children, and it is understandable (though not laudable) that she would seize an opportunity to kill him, even if he weren’t threatening her at that particular moment.

Also, it is somewhat justified to kill during wars, but not civilians and not even some wars which are completely unnecessary. World War II was a justified war with a clear enemy that invaded other nations’ sovereignty. During the Vietnam War, there were some incidents that the media brought our attention to, of massacres of civilians and burning their towns, such as the My Lai massacre. This is only one example of atrocities committed during wars, which are not justified under any circumstances.

If one considers abortion the “taking of a human life” – which is controversial – then I also think it is justified according to a woman’s particular circumstances, which range from being unable to raise the child or being afraid of losing her job, to extreme cases like rape, incest, or when the life of the mother is in danger if the pregnancy continues. I am “pro-choice” because I think it is a private matter between a woman and her doctor, and I don’t presume to judge whatever situation she is going through. That said, I do not approve of abortion if the fetus is already viable – that is, can survive outside the womb, usually the late 2nd trimester or later, UNLESS it is a threat to the life of the mother. A fetus in the early stages of development does not feel anything yet so doesn’t suffer during the abortion. That said, really I don’t like abortion at all, at least not for myself. I could never have done it – I know I would have regretted it all my life if I had. When I got pregnant, I considered it as an option but my circumstances, while not ideal, were not dire, and I knew that I really wanted to have children. So I think it is a matter of choice.

Another controversial subject: the death penalty. I am totally against it. It is a barbaric custom that belongs to the past and I am ashamed that it is legal in my supposedly modern, civilized country.

Attitude of Gratitude Section (Always Optional)

Do small miracles exist?
Yes, if one sees them as “miracles.” They are the unexpected joys that people feel blessed or grateful for. I like to watch nature shows on TV, and I find it miraculous how various species have adapted to their environment – like fish living in the deep ocean who can produce their own light. I feel awe toward the wonders of nature. We are so blessed to have this beautiful planet that provides us with such bounty. Let’s not ruin it!!!

Posted on August 28, 2020August 28, 2020 by amoralegria · 4 Comments

RDP/FOWC: How We Teach & Learn History All Wrong in America

The Ragtag Daily Prompt today is the word lies. There is a lot I could write on this topic (for instance, most of what happened at the RNC these last four days). But I was just made aware of a John Oliver (I love this guy!!) show from a few weeks ago that is very relevant in the wake of the recent tragic events in Kenosha, Wisconsin and the protests and looting that have been going on all summer around the country. Why is this happening? Why is there so much racial unrest? Why are they saying black lives matter – don’t all lives matter? Everyone has an opinion, but too often their opinion is based on ignorance or downright lies.

From *Chicago Sun Times*, June 7, 2020; downloaded from *Google Images*

A few weeks ago – around the time John Lewis died – John Oliver on his show Last Week Tonight talked about how Americans learn history wrong. Maybe it has gotten better, but there are still some (any is too many) white people around who say stupid stuff like, “Slavery was bad, but those people were lucky to come to a great place like America.” (Meaning being a slave here was better than living free in African societies.) Textbooks for young children dumb down history, saying things like the colonists “brought slaves with them to help with farm work and chores.”

“Washington freed his slaves” is another myth. Instead of teaching kids lies like George Washington chopped down a cherry tree and then confessed to his father, saying, “I cannot tell a lie,” why can’t we teach kids that yes, Washington was the ‘father of our country’ and he should be honored for being the first president, but he also OWNED SLAVES and he DID NOT free them when he was president (or afterward, either)! I admit, I never learned a single negative fact about Christopher Columbus or George Washington until I got to college. Why can’t students learn both the positive and the negative – i.e. the FACTS about these historical figures?

Well, don’t we need heroes? Yes, but kids, even elementary students, can understand that people can be both good and bad. Acts of heroism don’t erase the rest of a hero’s life. I’m not dissing heroes. I just think we need to be honest. And although any history teacher knows that one year in high school is not enough time to teach all of American history, we shouldn’t ignore important events that are more convenient to ignore than to teach our students. (American history should be taught for at least two years, or part of it every year.)

As a result, many Americans graduate from high school ignorant about American history (and forget about world history). We need to help students understand why racism continues to survive. We need to connect the past to the present, help our students make the connections, so they can understand what is happening now.

This is an excellent video that is worth spending the 28+ minutes to watch.

I need to say here that I do not necessarily approve of taking down statues of people like George Washington. But the idea of the so-called “cancel culture” is a topic for another post.

Posted on July 13, 2020January 12, 2021 by amoralegria · 1 Comment

SYW: On Dancing, Sleeping, Snapping Fingers, & Ziplining

Questions:

Hurray! It’s Monday again, the day Melanie puts out a new set of questions for Share Your World! And this week, they’re real doozies! So here goes…

What song always gets you out on the dance floor? Any catchy Latino or other dance tune, such as:

Actually, I have a whole dance workout playlist, which includes this song and many others, including songs with a good beat from Latin America, Brazil, Africa, Celtic (Ireland/Scotland), Caribbean steel pan, and more. I listen to it when I’m at the fitness center working out, and I really miss it now, because I can’t go to the fitness center to work out!

What’s your favorite sleeping position?
I go to sleep and spend most of the night on my back. I use a special pillow for my neck due to a minor case of scoliosis that I inherited from my dad, and also slide a small pillow under my knees. But some time during the night, I switch pillows and sleep on my right side with the small pillow between my knees. Eventually, I go back to sleeping on my back.

If you could snap your fingers and instantly make the world better, what would you do?
Of course I would do it, but I have noticed that lately my finger snap doesn’t make a snapping noise anymore – I think it’s a sign I’m getting old!! I can’t whistle very well anymore either.

Also, would I get to decide, before the finger snap, what constitutes making the world better? That would be important, since what is better in my opinion, may not be what others think. So I will list some of my requirements for the “world being better:”
–clean energy used all over the world, mitigating the effects of climate change. Earth will
breathe a sigh of relief, and it would save many people around the world from starvation, displacement, and war. Everyone would be invested in conserving resources. The planet would begin to heal itself and its inhabitants as well. No more extinction of precious species.
–no more poverty
–medicine will be advanced to be able to cure any disease or find a vaccine easily and quickly – maybe like the “healing” done on the Star Trek series, just waving a scanning-type device over the diseased part, and voila! – the person is healed!

–no one left on Earth named Trump
–racism and discrimination wouldn’t exist, there would be no more war.
–PEACE ON EARTH!!

What’s the scariest thing you’ve ever done, and why did you do it?

I don’t want to go into my most nightmarish, scary experience, which wasn’t exactly something I did – it just happened to me. So I will answer with the scariest thing I ever did voluntarily and willingly….I went ziplining in Costa Rica!!

I was with my son in Monteverde; we’d gone there for a weekend during a monthlong stay in Costa Rica. He wanted to go ziplining – we were at the place where you get geared up and listen to all the instructions and safety rules. I didn’t really want to go, but if I stayed behind, I would have to amuse myself with nothing but a small tourist shop for entertainment for about two hours, which was the approximate length of this experience. I was really scared, but I looked around at the other participants and there were several who were clearly older than me. So I started to feel ashamed of myself if I didn’t go, and if I chickened out, I would probably regret it later. Needless to say, I went.

There were a total of 14 ziplines in this course. Some were short, some were longer. It was very important to judge when to pull the rope to slow down – you wanted to do it soon enough to slow down sufficiently when you arrived at the platform. On the other hand, if you pulled the rope too early on a long line, you could end up slowing down and stopping in the middle of the line, with only your gear holding you, dangling about 200 meters above the rainforest floor! But don’t worry, we were told – there will be a guide on the other side who will signal for when to pull the rope.

That worked OK for the first three or four lines. There were a lot of tourists there speaking languages from all over the world. I soon got separated from my son, but I wasn’t worried.

Then came the line where I had an accident. I was zipping across, watching the guide on the other side to signal to me, but he was distracted by other tourists talking to him, so he didn’t signal. Should I or shouldn’t I, I wondered, panic rising. I was approaching the platform fast, too fast – I pulled the rope, but it was too late – I slammed into the metal frame of the platform. I felt searing pain in my right shin. It took a few minutes in the confusion for someone to come to my aid, because there were so many people crowded on the platform. I saw that my leg was bleeding, and rummaged through my backpack for some Kleenex. I had about two sheets of it left, which I gingerly applied to the long gash on my shin as I gasped in pain. The Kleenex didn’t do much good – it just stuck to the wound.

Finally, a guide came to my rescue. I told him I couldn’t go on, I needed to go back. He explained that that was impossible – we were in the middle of a rainforest and it was a several miles hike – uphill – to get back, and no one could be spared to accompany me. I wanted to sit in a truck, but I couldn’t do that either. He told me just to wait until he was free, and he would take me across himself. So I sat on the metal steps, while lines of gabby tourists flowed upward around me. My son had gone across the road with a couple of other young people, who had found a “Tarzan rope” – he called for me to come and see. I answered that I was seriously injured and could barely walk (this was exaggeration, which I tend to use when I get injured), so I couldn’t go see. He didn’t answer, and it wasn’t until he returned that he realized what had happened to me.

After what seemed like half an hour, the guide who was going to take me across came over and helped me up. He hooked himself and me together and off we went. He had introduced himself as Rafael, and started telling me facts about the rainforest – such as how far above the forest floor we were! He said I could look down into the canopy and spy monkeys or birds. (LOOK DOWN??? No way, Jose – I mean Rafael!). We arrived safely and gently at the next stop and he helped me down. I waited for him again, and once again I was in the arms of Rafael zipping above the green canopy. Even having him with me, I was too scared to look down. So I saw none of the wildlife advertised as being able to spot during this activity.

At the third stop after the accident, I waited a long time and realized that Rafael was no longer there. He’d forgotten me or perhaps thought I should be OK to go by myself. I protested and another guide took me across the next line. However, after that I was on my own.

Finally, mercifully, it was over. I even got a snapshot of my son zipping to the ground on the last stop. We then had about a quarter mile to walk to the waiting jeeps to take us back. I limped along, a nice guide holding my elbow. Although there was blood dripping down my leg and staining my sandal, he asked me if I had fun. I just laughed – I refused to be a whiny American tourist. Instead, I said something to him in Spanish and we conversed in Spanish the rest of the way back.

I almost forgot to limp!

**All images downloaded from Bing.

Posted on June 13, 2020June 13, 2020 by amoralegria · 3 Comments

6WS: An Injustice Anywhere…

AN INJUSTICE ANYWHERE THREATENS JUSTICE EVERYWHERE.

This paraphrases a quote by Martin Luther King Jr. The meaning hasn’t changed – I have just reduced it to six words to qualify for the Six Word Saturday challenge hosted by Debbie Smyth’s Travel With Intent.

We talk so much in the U.S.A. about freedom. Freedom is sort of our motto; it’s a word used casually without thinking too much about it. But what is freedom, really? Yes, there are the freedoms guaranteed in the Bill of Rights. But without justice, what is freedom?

The Pledge of Allegiance we all learn in elementary school ends with the phrase with liberty and justice for all. (Also six words, btw. 🙂 )

Students standing for Pledge of Allegiance

Perhaps we need to focus on justice instead of freedom. Because justice includes freedom – justice allows the judged to be as free as anyone else in society. And without justice, one is not really free. Think about it: A law is passed giving everyone 18 and over the right to vote, regardless of gender, race, creed, etc. Yet when a certain group of people is denied the right to vote by voter suppression methods, then that group in reality doesn’t have the right to have their voice heard through voting. This was a problem in the Jim Crow South when blacks were obliged to take a test or pay a tax when they went to register to vote. Although the Civil Rights Act of 1964 put a stop to that, officials in some states have lately found new ways to deny the vote to certain groups. Sure, a lawsuit can be filed, but it may not go into effect in time for people to vote. During a pandemic, do citizens really have the freedom, the right, to vote if they must do it in person instead of by mail?

I got to thinking about this while reading an Op Ed in our local newspaper, The Daily Herald. Quoting the writer of this editorial, Keith Peterson*: “in many countries the term freedom did not resonate in the ways that it does in American hearts. More often than not, the word that resonated was justice.” Justice is about setting to right a history of wrongs.

Today there was a news item that Donald Trump, through executive order, has modified an Obama-era health care law by excluding transgender people from the guarantee of health care. In other words, if a transgender person goes to the ER, the medical staff does not have to give that person treatment. A transgender person then has the right to sue the hospital or doctor for refusal of health care, but how practical is that when the person needs immediate medical treatment? (By the way, today is the anniversary of the Orlando Pulse nightclub massacre and this month is LGBTQ Pride Month. I do not think Trump’s action on this particular day was an accident.)

Some people would like to ban Muslims from this country or have defaced or vandalized local mosques. The worshippers of those mosques are afraid of violence against them because of epithets written on a wall of their mosque. Where is their freedom to worship? It depends on litigation and prosecution – in other words, justice.

The protests against police brutality in the last two weeks all over the U.S.A. and all over the world have had an impact: many cities are already rethinking the organization and training of their police forces.

Justice sometimes takes time, lots of time. But we must demand it. Freedom and equality depend on it.

*Keith Peterson lives in Lake Barrington, Illinois. He served 29 years as a press and cultural officer for the United States Information Agency and Department of State. Quote taken from Keith Peterson, “World is watching us for justice” in Daily Herald (Northwest Suburban Edition), June 7, 2020, p. 12 sec. 1.

All photos downloaded from Google Images.

Posted on June 11, 2020June 11, 2020 by amoralegria · 1 Comment

FOWC: Risk For a Cause

Fandango’s One Word Challenge this week is the topic of risk.

Risk taking is a major consideration these days. With a coronavirus pandemic still raging, while the federal government chooses to ignore its continuation and many states “opening” – opening beaches, restaurants, other places where people gather in close quarters. Of course, one can take precautions to avoid the risk of being infected. But what if something is too important to stay at home and do nothing? When yet another black person was unnecessarily killed by the police, people all over the world took the risk of being in close contact with others to protest. And the protests, being so large and widespread, led many cities to reexamine their police departments to initiate radical reforms. So in this case, for those thousands of protesters, the risk was worth it. We may see a spike in Covid-19 cases within the next week or so that could be traced to the protests. Some of the people who marched and carried signs, even with masks on, may have contracted the virus, and some may die.

To risk one’s life for a cause – that was the choice these past two weeks. It is not a new phenomenon: people have risked their lives for causes they believed in throughout history. Those who work as doctors or nurses in hospitals overflowing with coronavirus cases without proper PPE risk their lives at work every day. Those who hid Jews or joined the resistance movements during the Nazi era in Europe risked their lives. The men and women who fight in wars risk their lives. Those who protested the disappearance of loved ones during the dictatorships in Latin America risked their lives. Young people in China in June, 1989 risked their lives by protesting in Tiananmen Square in Beijing. Refugees risk their lives crossing borders to flee war or persecution, travel in dangerous circumstances, and when they get to what they hope is a safe haven, there is the risk they will be sent back to their countries to certain death.

Yet courageous people continue to risk their lives in some way every day.

Wearing masks, but not maintaining physical distance during a pandemic is risky.

Some wear masks, many do not. It’s worth the risk to possibly save black lives from police brutality.

Images downloaded from Politico: “Enough is Enough.”

Posted on April 2, 2020 by amoralegria · 3 Comments

FPQ: What Will Be Our Post-COVID-19 World?

Fandango’s Provocative Question #63 is a very relevant one:

When we finally get through this COVID-19 pandemic at some point in the future, do you think the world is going to change from what is was like before anyone ever heard of coronavirus? Or will things quickly return to “business as usual”?

I am not sure about the world, but I will talk from the perspective of the United States. This is the most serious problem that requires everyone’s cooperation in our history. Both good and bad will result from it.

Like the period after 9/11, the U.S. will experience a shift that may be permanent. After 9/11, people became more fearful, and that permeated all aspects of society. That fear led to increased prejudice, which ultimately culminated in the election of Donald Trump.

What I think the pandemic will do is make it very clear the serious problems our country has – it will lay them bare as they never have been before. The silver lining of the pandemic is that Donald Trump will probably not be reelected. (Of course, I wish he would be deposed in a less destructive way. And I don’t take it for granted that he will lose, so everybody VOTE!!)

But more importantly, the deficiencies in our health care system and our economic inequality will be top priority of whoever takes office next year. We cannot ignore these things anymore. We’ve been discussing the notion of health care for all for decades. Past administrations looked the other way. When Clinton tried to make reforms, there was a backlash. While Obama did manage to pass the ACA (aka Obamacare), it ended up being watered down due to many compromises that had to be made with the Republicans. Since then, the goal of the Republicans is to repeal the ACA without anything to replace it. And that’s where we are now.

But when the crisis of this pandemic is over, ignoring the problems in our health care system will no longer be possible. The fact that we were not ready for the pandemic is partly shortsightedness of the federal government but also due to deficiencies of our health care system. Our hospitals and health care workers are being overworked and they lack basic equipment. Hospitals are filling to capacity while thousands of others aren’t able to get tested for COVID-19. When testing did become available, people were worried about how they would pay for it (and thanks to Katie Porter, it ended up being free). I think we will really have to examine the priority that health care should have over almost anything else.

Leadership and how we choose leaders may be another problem that we will look at more closely, and their readiness to handle any crisis. We generally choose leaders by charisma and showmanship, and part of the problem is that our choices are limited to two parties. And voting rates are low because many people don’t think their votes count – well, who can blame them when one candidate wins a majority of the popular vote by millions of votes, but the other candidate becomes president because of our weird “Electoral College.” And we end up with old white men instead of energetic, idealistic younger leaders. Whether this pandemic will end up galvanizing voters, I don’t know. I hope so.

Respect for scientists, belief in them – ignoring science has become a hallmark of conservative Republicans. The governors of some southern states refused to issue stay-home orders by mid-March because they had become used to ignoring and even ridiculing science, the facts. They worried more about the effect on the economy than saving lives. As I write this, three southern states (Florida, Georgia and Mississippi) are FINALLY today issuing stay-at-home orders and acting as though they had no idea the pandemic was this severe! Because it’s become the thing to do for “real” Republicans to thumb their noses at the experts.

I read an editorial in our local paper today, in which the author calls this pandemic time the age of “pathological individualism.” Individualism is fine, but people take it to extremes so that it really becomes selfishness. Individuals think they have a right to do whatever they want without regard for others. Perhaps that was what the governors who waited too long to implement “social distancing” in their states, were thinking. How can we just tell people to stay home? Don’t we have freedom of movement? What about their jobs? This is the United States of America!

What about us, as individual Americans? We will have sacrificed for the greater cause. In times of crisis, the majority of Americans set aside their petty differences and do what they can to help others. Why can’t we be that way all the time? And even now, there are some nasty, vindictive people who are harassing Asians as if these individuals in their community are somehow responsible for manufacturing the virus.

Inequality will be the biggest problem we will have to face, and inequality and racism are intertwined. We have always had inequality, but in recent years the divide between the haves and the have-nots has grown increasingly larger. There are greedy corporate CEOs who quibble over every dollar of taxes when they have millions or billions at one end of the population, and people who cannot obey stay-at-home orders because they have no home on the other. When an analysis of the sick and the dead is completed, what will it say about those who have money and good insurance and those that don’t? Will there be more deaths among the poor? These are questions whose answers are yet to be revealed.

My husband believes that our people will become less consumerist – many things will not have the value they’ve had in the past. People will be very well-acquainted with shortages, just as they were emerging from WWI and WWII. Family and friends will become even more precious, and the desire to express our feelings will be more acute.
I hope he is right, but I’m afraid consumerism is hard-wired in us by now. Perhaps at the end of this pandemic, when people have jobs again, they will go on a buying frenzy. They will be exhorted to do so by the government, in order to jump-start the economy. In the meantime, online buying and delivery services are and will continue to be more ubiquitous than ever.

There will be lots of analyses of the pandemic, from scientific articles about the behavior and characteristics of the virus itself to political critiques about the response to the pandemic – was it too little, too late? Was Trump’s lack of leadership a major factor in the out-of-control number of cases and deaths? In fact, Adam Schiff is already talking about setting up a commission, like the 9/11 Commission, to research, evaluate and synthesize the entire crisis once the pandemic is over. A very large tome with small print and thin paper will be released a couple of years from now for anyone in the public who has the time and inclination to actually read it. But its main points will be publicized and talked about.

Will this lead to dialogue to deal with the very serious problems threatening our democracy? Probably, among some people. But I’m sorry to say, I think most people will return to their former lives (if they still have jobs, that is) as much as they are able – the life they knew that was comfortable. Yet, we won’t be the same. What characteristic will linger when we are all free to roam the world again? After 9/11, it was fear. Post-pandemic, it might be pathological individualism. We’ve fought the good fight, we came out of it with a shaky economy but we can get back to where we were. And now we want our individual lives back.

(All photos except the last one were downloaded from Google Images. The last photo is my own – we found hand sanitizer at Walgreens!)

Posted on July 16, 2019July 16, 2019 by amoralegria · 1 Comment

NO ESCAPE AND NOWHERE TO RUN – Marilyn Armstrong

This very thoughtful and wise post is from Marilyn Armstrong in reponse to Fandango’s daily prompt “escape.” I know I could never have said it better than she did. I can confirm that Israel has turned to the right – I was there six months ago and although I never brought up politics, several Israelis (all men – it figures!) gave me their unsolicited opinion that they really like Trump and think “he is very good for Israel.” I really wanted to engage them in a dialogue but I just acknowledged their remarks with a nod of my head and a wry smile, and carried on with my tour.

Serendipity Seeking Intelligent Life on Earth

FOWC with Fandango — Escape

A lot of my post this morning are quotes from “The Washington Post.”

Why, you might ask, since I’m a born and bred New Yorker living in New England and Boston for more than 30 years, would I read “The Post” rather than “The NY Times” or “Boston Globe”? Because both of these two papers — run by the same company, by the way — charge nearly $30/month for an online edition. In other words, $60/month if in my madness, I subscribed to both.

I like the Times and the Globe. I would prefer to read local news and not just national news. But their prices make that impossible. If the Times/Globe organization wants to get a bump upward in their readership, they should reconsider their pricing. Even if they were delivering the paper to my door (physically, the actual newspaper), I still could not afford…

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Posted on May 7, 2019May 7, 2019 by amoralegria · 6 Comments

Question Fun or Fun Questions?

There’s a Guy Called Bloke who twice a week dreams up a series of weird or far-out questions meant to stretch the mind. The topic for these particular questions is Creativity. Consider my mind stretched, Bloke! Here goes:

What is creativity?
The ability to create, invent or imagine something new or in new ways. There are many types of creativity and many ways of looking at it. Every human being is or has the ability to be creative in some way.

Is creativity a good thing to have?
Absolutely! I never leave home without it!

How much does a mountain weigh?
Not being a geologist, I guess this calls for a creative answer. I would answer with another question: How big is the mountain? Sometimes a mountain is no more than slightly bigger than a hill. It depends on your perspective. If you live in Colorado, where you see mountains as part of the landscape every day, a hill would be merely a hill. But if you live in a flat place, like Illinois or Kansas, a very tall hill might be considered a mountain. In fact, I believe there was a British movie made about this, starring Hugh Grant, with a title something like “The Man Who Went Up a Hill and Came Down a Mountain.” The people of a small town in Wales sought some notoriety so they wanted a hill in their town to be considered a mountain. But the hill was just a little bit too short for mountain status. So all it takes is for people to come carrying clumps of dirt and rocks to build up the hill a little, so it can become a mountain. Let’s say there were 100 townspeople, carrying about 30 lbs. each. So to make a “mountain” they needed 3,000 lbs. That’s my answer to how much a mountain weighs.

If the wheel had not have been inventented, where we would be now?
Walking, riding beasts of burden, I guess. And we’d probably think the world was flat.

How many books in the average library?
Some libraries today have very few physical books – they have digitized most or all of their collection. Not as much fun, but it takes up less space. Are digital books (ebooks) to be counted as books? I am again answering a question with another question because I don’t know how to answer.

library-1 — Trinity College Library, Dublin, 1732 (Google image)

Why do we wear shoes, l mean is it really important?
The human foot actually evolved to be used unshod. Some people claim that shoes actually cause harm to the natural foot, and natural shoes are made to supposedly combat that, but I think it’s just a ploy by some innovative shoe company to sell more shoes. Wearing shoes is partly convention and partly to protect our feet at least from the cold, but also sharp objects. I think the manmade landscape of concrete – sidewalks, roads, stairways, etc. – have made wearing shoes a requirement. I once rode a horse that had been neglectfully unshod for many years. This horse was at a riding stable, so the horse had traversed many paths and roads without protective iron horseshoes. It had damaged the poor creature’s hooves, which were cracked and spread out. I imagine he or

hjigh heel horseshoes — Horse high heels – ridiculous? If you think they’re ridiculous for horses, then why aren’t they ridiculous for humans?

she must have been very uncomfortable. Wild horses, of course, don’t wear shoes, but they wander their natural environment and don’t carry people on their backs. So I think it’s the same for humans. We have created the need for shoes by altering our environment. Then we created outlandish fashions that are completely unsuitable for anyone’s feet. This has led to a variety of foot-related problems which keep podiatrists well-employed. Also, if you live in a climate with cold winters, shoes and boots are really necessary to keep your feet warm. Perhaps the Inuit of Alaska wear some type of moccasin-like boots, but for sure they are well padded and insulated to keep out the cold. Moccasin or not, it’s still a shoe or falls in the general category of “foot wear.”

What’s more important, creativity, imagination or knowledge and why?
I think they all go together. Creativity by definition cannot exist without imagination, and knowledge only enhances the other two. Look at it this way: you had to have knowledge to think about and write down these creative questions, and the imagination to even think them up.

Do you think that creativity is part of human nature or is it something that must be nurtured and learned? I mean are we born creative?
All humans are born with some sort of creativity, so yes – it is a part of human nature, as is using one’s imagination. On the other hand, some people are more creative than others, and others have their creativity/imagination repressed by some public school practices, such as an emphasis on preparing for standardized tests….but don’t get me (a former teacher) started on what is wrong with public education! There are a variety of situations in which an individual may be deprived of or discouraged to use his/her imagination and creativity. On the other hand, creativity and imagination can help people in stressful situations or confinement to survive.

What’s the worst name you could give a raccoon?
“@#$%$#@$%, get the h— out of my garbage!” That’s the worst name and only name I’ve ever heard people use when addressing a raccoon in the suburban environment where I live.

What the best name you could give your goldfish?
Nemo? I am not very creative when it comes to naming fish. I’ve never had a pet fish.

If you could curse someone – what curse would you choose?
May you always be too close to the fire.

If you were in the worst possible natural disaster you could be in would you survive?
I don’t know, I suppose my survival instinct would kick in. Here in the Midwest, the main natural disaster is tornadoes. If a tornado came to my neighborhood, I would go down into the basement. If I had no basement, I would get into the bathtub and try to stay away from outer walls. In school, we crouched down against an inner wall and put our hands over our heads. A second type of natural disaster is flooding. I would climb up to the top of the house, I suppose, and wait to be rescued. In case of fire, jump out the window, hopefully it’s not too far down.

What was your natural disaster then?
See above. These are the disasters I grew up learning how to survive. Other disasters, such as lava spewing out of a volcano, I probably wouldn’t survive.

You have been tasked with the role of imagining a new government – what would you conjure up and why?
One free of anyone with the last name of Trump, McConnell, or Pence! No, seriously, I would set up a system in which there would be economic and social equality, achieved through taxing the wealthy and not the poor. There would be campaigns to combat prejudices. I would have institutions in place to find and do away with corruption. And

1600px-Homosexualitytherapy — My ideal government would make laws against prejudice and discrimination.

imagining this scenario to be in the future, most jobs would be done by robots, so there would have to be a cabinet or ministry devoted to helping people adjust to having much more leisure time. In that case, money would become less important. In this scenario, people would understand and respect the importance of government. It is what gives a society cohesiveness.

What is imagination in your eyes?
The ability to let one’s mind soar, to go to places no one has ever gone before. (Does this sound like the opening line to a sci-fi series? I wonder…)

Given the choice would you prefer to be creative, imaginative, inventive or self-aware? Why?
Creativity, imagination and inventiveness, to me, are all connected – they are parts of the same thing. Being self-aware is also important. I think I would choose to be these things in different situations. For example, when I take walks, I choose to be self-aware so that I don’t trip on a crack in the sidewalk, fall down and injure myself. This has happened enough times for me to battle my tendency to let my mind wander and to come back to self-awareness when I’m mobile. However, when I am in a safe place and relatively immobile, I prefer to succumb to my creative side. That’s why I have trouble with meditation. I can’t help but think about whatever is in my mind and then forget to bring myself back to self-awareness (or mindfulness). Letting my mind wander is more fun!

lotus pose — And now, here it is: your moment of Zen…

All images downloaded from Google.

Posted on August 22, 2018August 22, 2018 by amoralegria · 2 Comments

Today Is Brought to You by the Number 8

Yesterday’s news items:
Manafort found guilty on 8 counts.
Cohen pleads guilty to 8 charges, implicates president in two of them.

I decided to share some of the memes being shared on social media (because they’re clever and say it better than I can). These are my favorites so far.