The Powers That Think They Be

I don't know why, but at a dinner party recently someone asked me to play the role of soothsayer and proclaim to those gathered where I thought the geopolitical world was headed. I've little understanding of such things these days and even less of a sense of what trends are now so firmly in place that we can know where the path mankind is traveling will lead us.

But considering the idiotic clown-like performance of our world "leaders" lately, let me share this circus metaphor that I used to provide my answer of sorts:

The Powers That Think They Be (PTTTB) gathered in the center ring have been entertaining us with a balancing act ….. keeping the wobbling, spinning plates of the economy precariously balanced atop slender poles held in trembling, uncertain hands. The crowd seems to know that these are merely incompetent clowns, not well-trained performers, but those of us who have paid for our ticket to this Greatest Show On Earth still hope fervently that no great catastrophe will occur to mar our entertainment.

As is usually the case with such performances of derring-do, when the plates finally fall to the floor in a shattering cacophony, the "PTTTBs" will simply cram themselves into their little clown jalopy, scurry from the circus ring, and leave the roustabouts to clean up the mess. And you and I, dear reader, are the roustabouts.

As to when and how this accident-in-waiting finally comes about, I'm afraid I don't have a clue. But the only way that I know that such a balancing act can end is either the jugglers catch all the plates in midair as they are falling (amidst great applause) and immediately treat the onlookers to another act, or the plates end up in a shattered heap on the floor, to the groans and disappointment of the crowd. In any case, the clowns have scampered away in merry abandonment, leaving the customers to wander down the midway looking for other distractions from reality.

So it is, so it will always be ….. unless we choose a different path.

As one of my favorite Chinese aphorisms states: "If you don't change your direction, you will surely end up where you are headed."