It's been awhile. A lot has happened, but it doesn't really feel like its a big deal. Only one semester to go before I am done with the school for the foreseeable future. Having only a few months left means that I'll be joining the real world soon. If that is the case I should enjoy this as best I can. While I'm slowly creeping up on the final days of my education, I am constantly educating myself in other ways. One example, which hasn't really changed, is my desire to figure out how the world works.
Writing this in the wake of the Iowa caucus is just a coincidence. Following everything I can, it just seems that nobody in the Republican camp can find their way out of an empty room with no walls. The only one with somewhat sensible views is Ron Paul. He comes as a mixed bag though because his faults outweigh the benefits by a long shot. Sure, ending the wars will be good and protecting civil liberties is nice, but reducing the federal governments power and letting states run their own asylums? Not a good idea. The reason for a strong federal government is so that transportation, and many other things, can be done in such a way where that if one were to go from state A to state B, there would not be a fear of getting in trouble. Giving states broader powers can enable them to enact legislation that can be vastly different from what the federal government has or the states around it. The possibility for state's to run amok with this power is enough reason to be concerned with someone who claims he is for civil liberties. Make no mistake, Ron Paul supports states rights so much that if the state entrenched on civil liberties he would go along with it because it is what the states wanted. Does not sound like somebody this country would want at the plate for us.
The problem with everything going on right now is that while Obama has done some good things, he just hasn't been what I wanted him to be. There really was not a chance that I was not going to vote for him, but I don't want to live in a place where person A gets my vote by default. The more I think about it the more I truly believe that elections are choosing between the lesser of two evils. Do I want Obama to be president again? Yes. I no longer hope for audacity though. I only hope that he can do the best with what he gets. The worst that Obama can be is still better than the best of any of the Republicans though. It's strange to think in a society where many, and, mostly conservative, people think that choice is a good thing that they are really only given a choice between this and that in terms of voting.
I guess the gist of the last bit is that I've become increasingly skeptical of government in general. Do we really have a government anymore? I mean, how many corporate dollars are tangled up in Washington to keep things from changing or changing things for the worse. I've also become very skeptical about society in general. For the longest time I agreed with Hobbes on human nature. He envisioned that the only way for people to live in such a way where we wouldn't kill each other constantly was creating a society with a strong ruler to enforce the laws. It seemed to make sense to me because I have always disliked people and think that most of them are as good as worthless. After thinking about it for awhile, I realized that my perception of people is based on how they act within society, not outside of it. Therefore, I have falsely attributed my views as Hobbesian where they are in fact, more in line with Rousseau. His idea was that man was a "noble savage" and that the natural state of things was outside of society. Society is what corrupts people, not the other way around. I've seen this happen more and more. Here we are living in a place where almost everyone dislikes each other. What is the point of living with people that don't want you to be around in the first place? Almost everyone is self-centered and could care less about empathy and the like. This society and culture have pervaded the very idea of what it is to be human. The problem with this is that this has the potential to make matters worse. All I can think of is the quote "familiarity breeds contempt." If people were to somehow to separate and only live with those like them, the possibility of worse treatment of minorities or those of the out group will happen with more frequency. One day, humans will look back and wonder how we ever got so far hating one another with the very fiber of our being.
I've always contemplated leaving for someplace better. I mean, there are plenty of statistics that show how many other countries are better than America in terms of education, health care, freedoms, and various other things. I'm just concerned because there are problems in those places too, it is not just America. It just seems from the outside looking in that almost every other civilized country has gotten the memo except for us. It would be much better to live in a country where my health care was a birthright. It would also be nice to have retirement paid for as well along with child care, vacation time, a more free press and media. Everything on paper seems so good. It's just taking that initial step to go where one fears the unknown. Just thinking about this a little while ago made me think if the fact that foreign languages are not as well advocated here is because the powers that be want us to feel trapped, like we have no other place to go. Sure, a lot of countries speak English, but it is disrespectful to use it anywhere where English is not recognized as an official or de facto (looking at you America) language.
On another front, it seems like the group is slowly coming apart. Not because of anything ridiculous, but because life is starting to happen. Chip is in D.C. now, and, probably for the foreseeable future. Richard will be gone once Caitlin is done with school and who knows where he will end up. Jared has been gone and I'll probably be gone soon too. This exodus would have been inevitable even if times were good. There is nothing wrong with staying in one place for your whole life, but for some, it is the worst possible thing to imagine. Going through your adult life in the same place where you were a child. Having everything seem so familiar is like living your life again just at a different time. I don't want to stay here. It has already been too long. If I got a job I would probably stay while looking for another job because getting trapped here for convenience is no way to start a new chapter in your life.
Well, that about sums up some of the things I've been thinking lately. Things will come and go for sure, but this just feels like something that will stick with me to the end. I just don't want to look back and wonder why. I know why now and I should evolve from this point, not devolve from a future point.
