Response to an advocate of Marxism n Owen's Geopolitical Analysis Facebook group

My final thoughts on this comment thread. Alex has raised critical issues about the track record of the USA and the need for very serious change in US and global society. Is the problem our political/economic system or is it rooted in human biopsychology? I think it's the latter, that the short-sighted survival instincts of our species (tribalism, self-interest) are the reason we haven't developed a wise, compassionate, just US and global society, despite our capacities for compassion, problem-solving and rational thinking and the interdependence of all people. I'm not convinced humanity will ever achieve one but I hope it happens, even if it doesn't emerge until long after I'm gone. I appreciate that Alex holds out hope and is passionate in his desire for it to happen. 

For me, the evolution of the biggest socialist experiments, the USSR and China, are not encouraging, as both developed into authoritarian police states (consider e.g., Stalin and Beria) that kept/keep people in line by force and terror. Individuals in the USA have considerably more freedom than in either of those, for better (free speech, free movement, free press) or worse (unlimited guns). The current Russian leader, a former KGB colonel and current ultra-successful international gangster, is a product of the Soviet police state culture. (I have to believe he holds very damning information over Trump's ugly head).

In the short-term, I believe defeating Trump in November is critical to staving off disaster, climate change being an obvious global danger with massive consequences among others, such as present and future pandemics and the resurgence of authoritarian nationalism around the world. The longer term picture is too murky for me to predict but I'm not confident our system (and humanity in general) is capable of solving our own much less the world's destructive trends. Our technologies (AI, nuclear weapons, greenhouse gas emissions) threaten our existence on multiple fronts. In any case, I don't think the idea of a socialist revolution in the USA to implement a different basis of government is realistic in the near future. I think a revolt from the Trump side by rank-and-file supporters based on propaganda driven delusional thinking if he loses in November is more likely than one from the socialist left based on Marxism. If that were to happen, there's no telling what Trump might try in his final months as a lame duck and the incoming Democratic administration might be faced with the prospect of using military force to keep the Union united. The Civil War is the biggest historic example but there have been a number of others that might be more similar. Of course, all that's speculative.

I'm not a true believer in any ideology. I'm focused on what I can do to be a positive influence in my own small world and I'm just hoping for the best. I have a saying "we don't know what we don't know." The above are my provisional opinions based on what I know at this point in time.

How my day started off

I got up at 5:55AM to have a bowl of cereal while Mary Lou got ready for her 7am Tread class. Checking Facebook, I saw an articulate, insightful post regarding the COVID-19 pandemic by my friend, Blair, who lives in Roswell, GA.  I gave it the heart reaction and moments later she texted me to say she thinks she has the virus. She definitely has something- sweats, chill, coughing, exhaustion. If it's not COVID-19, it's some kind of respiratory infection. Blair has a virtual doctor visit scheduled for this evening. She's scared and alone, afraid to tell her boyfriend. I was as supportive as I know how to be.

I needed more sleep so I went back to bed and had an elaborate dream. The first part I can recall took place in a trailer office that was parked on land "we" (my current family?) owned. The trailer had a connection to Raising Canes, perhaps they had allowed Maureen to keep it after she left for her new job. The office was narrow and Spartan, just a counter along one side and a seat or bench to sit on and a toilet that was simply a square opening in one corner like the shaft under a Porta-Pot. The opening was full of water and scrap paper, not disgusting or smelly. I thought we would have to pay for a waste truck to come empty it on a regular basis.

In a long second scene, I left this place carrying some kind of object. I can't recall exactly what it was but it was like a small mattress, a bit awkward but not too heavy. I was walking into an urban area and I decided I should return the object to where I left from. I had turned a corner so the place I left was at the opposite corner of the block. I was considering which route to take and I decided to try cutting through a building.

Inside I found it to be an upscale multi-use building with a number of doors to the outside. I went into a room set up like a small classroom where an expert with a beard in a suit was about to give a talk. He had the air of a smooth operator. The man passed a sign in sheet with first initials and last names to me which I took and entered my name O. Scott. I then slipped out the back as he began his talk. I was walking around looking for an exit, no longer carrying the object. I simply wanted to get out of the building so I could return to my base.  I went into a suite of rooms with an open design that turned out to be a psychiatric residential unit. An elderly lady indicated this was her room. She made a comment about being in Denver (which we weren't) and palm trees swaying in the wind, conveying to me she probably had dementia. An aide appeared and I left quickly still seeking an exit. I noted a closed store front with a sign that said APPAREL  I was checking out doors on the right side of the building that might lead to the street. One had an emergency light above it and looked as if it would make an alarm go off. I moved on to a big wooden door that opened onto a park-like grass lawn ending it a tall fence against a high embankment with no obvious way to exit the grounds back to the city. While I had a sense of being lost in the building and wanting to escape, I wasn't frightened, just mildly anxious and in problem-solving mode. For some reason, I didn't ask anyone to help me find the exit.

Final thoughts after reading the ending chapters of Laura's "Love Letters" manuscript

Laura,

I really should read a popular romance novel for comparison purposes; but, not having done that, I suspect the quality of your story is significantly better than most. Here's why: Writing a novel is an act of love. The inspiration to write is just a starting point. Creating a compelling story with complex, believable characters and realizing it in a long, coherent, fine-grained verbal narrative required a combination of intelligence, knowledge, psychological insight, imaginative vision, concentration, and persistence that very few people possess. The element of magic realism (Lillian speaking to Lauren in dreams and paranormal experiences) is one of the best features of the story both as a creative idea and its realization in prose. The incorporation of the actual letters is another brilliant accomplishment imo. A third impressive strength I've mentioned several times is your ability to describe the real-time thoughts and feelings of the characters in a wide variety of life situations. Your depiction of sexual encounters (and solo acts) is another major strength. That's a lot of impressive strengths.

Nothing about the explanatory debriefing you provided surprises me. It all makes sense and resonates with what I understood from reading the ms and discussing it in our email correspondence. I knew you already had written a sequel (!!!) meaning that the ending of Love Letters 1 is locked in. Any significant change would create a domino effect requiring you to re-imagine and rewrite the sequel.

It's interesting to think about how a tragic death for Ren would impact on Lauren and her relationship with Ben. Could she ever get over it? I wouldn't underestimate her strength and resiliency. Throughout the turbulent history of human civilization people have had to do this. Modern affluent US citizens are relatively spoiled in this regard, as you are certainly aware. My years of dealing with PTSD, addiction, and general human struggles have impacted or maybe skewed my perspective. You've shared that you've experienced sexual trauma so you have personal experience with coming to terms with all those terrible issues. I used to start by telling the person "Something bad happened to you that was not your fault. It may take you a long time to believe that but I know it and it's the truth." Something to that effect. And I repeated it frequently in the course of therapy. I would hope Lauren would come to the conclusion that Ren was a tragic victim of his own "issues" and she didn't have the power to save him. She would still cherish the positive impact he had on her life without which she couldn't have had her own LHEA. We have to accept not being in control of anything except our own efforts (which do make a difference) and forgive ourselves for not having the power to stop tragic things from happening and make everything work out as we believe it should. But that's not to argue that you should change the ending of the story in Love Letters 1. Maybe, to your credit, you care too much about Ren to kill him off.

So, the thing that needs the work is the language itself. You're well into addressing that and I know I've been helpful in the effort. Much of what you've written is already excellent (see above). It makes me feel very good to know that I'm the friend who came through on the commitment to assist. I didn't know what to expect when I asked if I could read your ms but when I began reading, it quickly became evident you were creating an impressive work of fiction. My criticisms are minor in relation to what you've already achieved and have been driven by my wish for you to bring out your best and have a shot at reaching your audience and leaving them wanting more. Let's go for it!

 Owen

Weighing priorities

At this point in my life, my financial and healthcare bases are covered and my only responsibilities, besides finishing my term on the Grand Jury, are being a good husband, father and friend. Everything else is optional. Setting immediate and longer term priorities is in order.

I'll state the various ones that come to mind in list form.

1) Music.
 -Producing reasonably good recordings of my original songs and covers.
 -Writing lyrics to music I've written.
 -Livestream performances.

2) Family archives
 -Organizing the photos, documents, paintings. books and whatnot
 -Developing and implementing a storage plan
 -Deciding what to dispose of by giving or throwing away

3) Stamp and postcard collections
 -Organize everything
 -Decide what to keep
 -Create a comprehensive catalog
 -Determine and document values
 -Decide how to dispose of unwanted items (sell on consignment?)

4) Double-take manuscript and documents
 -Revisit and edit for a final version (or not)

5) Good causes (Social justice, the environment, institutes of learning and science, the arts, friends)
 -decide who and what I want to support and in what ways

6) Other writing
 -Organizing my blog posts, Facebook notes and comments, various handwritten and digital notes, fragments etc.

7) Self-care (exercise, medication, diet)

8) What else? I'm sure I'll think of other things after I post this blog entry.

Post-op status report

I saw Dr. Fivgas on Friday and learned the bubble injected during my last procedure has dissolved completely.  This came as a surprise as my vision in the affected left eye is still severely impaired. However, he also determined the retina is attached. For that reason, I believe there is some chance I'll recover some useful vision. I may look into getting another opinion from a highly rated retina clinic if that proves feasible.

When writing about vision problems, it's difficult to avoid optical metaphors such as "we'll see" and "it isn't clear." That said, it isn't clear exactly what's wrong with my left eye in that the retina is attached according to Dr. Fivgas when he examined it last week. The fluid in that eye is cloudy apparently, possibly from blood that leaked into it after the last procedure. My eye still feels tender on the left side as it has ever since that operation. At present, I can perceive patches of light and dark corresponding to what's around me and vague images of objects on the periphery. A second issue is low intraocular pressure for unknown reasons. High pressure causes glaucoma but I'm not sure if low pressure causes damage or is just an indication that something in the structure isn't working as it should. So we'll see (hopefully, haha). At least, I'm not experiencing pain from it and my stoical attitude if readiness to accept any outcome is working in my favor.

Sermon on Black Lives Matter

Did BLM protests spread COVID-19?

1. The effects of infection by COVI-19 show up within two weeks. But I know many people made a decision to take the risk because they believed it was important to address the issue of unnecessary violence by police against black citizens. Although it's taken a long time for white citizens to appreciate the seriousness of the problem, a majority of US voters including me now agree (evidence to follow). It's not about getting rid of law enforcement agencies which is a ludicrous idea. It's about changing the widespread law enforcement culture that rationalizes criminal abuse of citizens as a means to maintain order. That's not an effective approach to gaining the trust and confidence of the people you're charged with serving and protecting. People with my view will be accused of supporting chaos and lawlessness, wanting to take everyone's guns, establish a Communist state like Venezuela etc which is ridiculous and sheer propaganda. We can have police forces that balance controlling crime with respecting the rights of the public, especially black and minority citizens. No rational person wants a breakdown of order but the law applies to law enforcement, too. 

2. It's difficult for the average white person to put him or herself into the shoes of black people and appreciate all the additional stressors they experience. It's not because white people are evil or lack compassion- it's because most of us live in a different world from the black people across town. If you read the scholarly history of the black experience since the Emancipation Proclamation, it's shocking and not just up until the Civil Right Act of 1964 was passed. I don't talk about this much on this page because either people already understand or they'll see me as a "typical liberal snowflake" and tune me out. But very few people have dealt with as much violence in a professional context as I have- I specialized in PTSD for over 30 years and if I haven't seen it all, I've seen most of it. The tragic George Floyd incident opened a window for many white people to see the harsh  national reality..I've seen it here in Baton Rouge. Will the surge of compassion last past a few more news cycles? I hope so. Will the destructive actions of a few foolish people committing violence and vandalism shift the narrative and take the steam out of the movement toward reforming police culture where it needs reform? I hope not.

3. Police officers serve an important and necessary role in society. They're not intrinsically bad and evil. They're not all racists. They're human beings who are members of their local law enforcement culture. If that culture teaches that it's ok to use excessive force to keep the streets under control, that's what they'll learn and they'll believe it's necessary and for the best. They'll have the support of many civilians who are afraid of crime and view black males via stereotypes.  When people protest against it, there will always be some irresponsible people who do stupid things that don't help the cause. The problems are entrenched in US society and will be difficult to change but the effort has to be made "in Order to form a more perfect Union."