The Price of Liberty

Coronavirus (Beer flu) is not the only reason we are seeing panic.

Consider:

Wars and rumors of wars, rebellions, revolutions, elections, economic downturns, natural disasters, diseases, famines, droughts and more are with us constantly.

When it comes to politics, the rest of the world has its share of panic, both in the streets and in the halls of government and business:

1. Canada may have ended its latest constitutional, ethnic, ethical, and political crisis. A compromise may have been reached with the hereditary chiefs of a tiny First Nations tribe in BC which will end the blockade of railroads and highways which has nearly brought the Confederation’s economy to a standstill, and even threatened starvation of farmers, ranchers, and their livestock. It has even heightened the threat of secession, not from Quebec, but from Alberta and Saskatchewan. Canada’s woes are far from resolved, so it might be natural to panic.
2. Although now again independent from the European Union, the UK is still roiled with political problems. Not just including the new relationship with Europe and the economic impact of Beer Flu. There is fresh unrest in Scotland, more concerns in Northern Ireland, and stock market woes. No wonder many are still worried.
3. Turkey and Russia (with its Syrian ally) have actually begun fighting each other in Syria, and NATO claims it will support Turkey as a member of NATO. A fresh round of fighting will further destroy lives and property in Syria, other parts of Mesopotamia, Turkey, and elsewhere. Is it any surprise that tens of thousands of people are seeking to flee the region for Europe?
4. Turkey, Greece, Hungary, and other nations in Europe are sealing their borders, and “refugees” and migrants are gathering and getting angry. Worry and fear are growing and coronavirus is a good excuse for severe action. The mobs in Turkey trying to get out of there just add to the fear and panic.
5. Meanwhile, warfare continues elsewhere, as well: Yemen, Armenia, Ukraine, and various African nations are still hot. And India and Pakistan still are on high alert with each other, North Korea is shooting more missiles in “tests” and Gaza is still throwing more rockets around. Turkey is not just involved in Syria but in Libya, where fighting continues. As if people in North Africa hadn’t already had good reasons to panic.
6. Mexico continues to roil with its various internal wars and the cartels against each other and government. Although little reported right now up in Yankee Land, the deaths and woundings and robberies continue. Running a risk of getting beheaded surely is a reason for massive fear and panic.
7. Greta Thunberg and her ilk are still spreading the gospel of “world gonna end in…” I think we are now down to ten years. Since most public school teachers and media are buying into this (and paying handsomely, I might add), we find that school children around the world are having nightmares and panic attacks over the world coming to an end.
8. And of course, with Super Tuesday now behind us, more and more Democrats are in a frenzied panic about what they can do to get rid of the most evil and dangerous man in American history. (That is Donald Trump, according to Nancy Pelosi, if you hadn’t heard.)

When we put it all together, panic reigns in dozens of world capitals and major cities. Sometimes in private, and sometimes in public. And millions of people, living in remote frontier or rural areas, but especially in larger urban areas, must deal with this.

So everything is falling apart?

Well, not really.

Because to put it in another way, it is pretty much business as usual around the world. The beautiful peaceful blues and whites we see from orbit are, as normal, hiding the true state of affairs.

None of this is truly new. And somehow, incredibly, enough adults and children have survived these sorts of things – and much worse – over the centuries. Enough to reproduce and come up with new ways to solve old problems. (Even though the new ways really aren’t, most all the time. And although the supposedly new ways also create NEW problems!)

Because it isn’t what is on the outside of people that causes panic. It is what is on the inside – your ability to accept reality and deal with it. Our ability to take responsibility for our actions. To go fix things even while we whinge about them, or are quaking in our boots. And for at least some of us, it is an abiding belief – inside us – in God, and in His great gift of liberty, of freedom, of life itself.