Doom v. Joy:
On Pigs, Troughs, and Darkness
by Carl Yadkin

Doom and gloom is easy. All of you have to do is look at history: one disaster after another. If it’s not a so-called "act of God" bringing misery to millions, then it’s one of those human exercises in vainglorious violence called "war".

Doom and gloom is easy. Joy is hard. Who in their right mind in the 1950s would have predicted the 1960s? Who in the long nights of the Black Plague would have predicted the Renaissance, which was just around the corner? Who in Troy would have predicted Athens?

Who among the millions of wee critters who couldn’t scurry fast enough to get out of the way of those big dumb feet would have predicted the end, the very sudden end as it turned out, of the dinosaurs?

Disasters abound. And they keep on abounding, which is why naysayers thrive. The odds seem very much on their side. "Safeguard the status quo!" they yell from the housetops. "Support the rich, the powerful, and the privileged! They always prevail and will surely see us through the coming catastrophe!"

So, if you want to be really careful: When in doubt, predict disaster, side with and vote Republican.

Why?
If you see the world as a pig pen, then the trough is where you want to be. It’s that simple.

Those who make it through the slop to get to the trough provide convincing role models for the up and coming piglets.

Think only about our current rulers. (The same is true for every generation, but we’re familiar with these people so it’s convenient to speak of them.) Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Rehnquist, Scalia, Thomas, Lott, DeLay, etc.

At the trough now, they find that everywhere they go they are the center of attention. The world hangs on their words. Surely, theirs are lives and careers to be envied and emulated.

As George W. Bush keeps saying with profound uncaring callousness about 9-11: He hit the trifecta.

As have those around him. Years of mucking about in the pig pen, going along to get along, have brought them to the spotlight on the world stage.

What more could a person want?

Choices
Pause for a moment and ask: Did these persons ever have a choice?

Maybe. When they were young.

Assuming that we do have choices, the far more important question is: Why is this civilization constructed in such a way that the opportunity to make deep, positive, creative choices is not encouraged and celebrated? Why the encouragement to get to the slop trough or, if your family is already there, to act in such a way as to keep your place at the trough?

Given the glittering temptations hung before us, given the praise of and attention paid to those at the trough who never made a choice but who just slopped through—and hit the trifecta—it’s no wonder that we find ourselves repeatedly at the precipice of disaster.