Meet Me In 2020

                                       Written By: F. John Surells

            Alright, I guess that this time I may have gone too far – but maybe not. And anyway, no matter what I say here, those “rule benders” who’ve been sanctioned to say whatever they darn well please will continue to say and write whatever they darn well please. But who gave the “rule benders” a free hand to do, say, and write whatever they please? It must have been those who consider themselves the “rule makers.”

            Thus, in violation of the rule makers’ wishes, we have a rather rambling piece here which speaks of topics such as the current state of literary affairs, dreams, economics, the “people of summer,” and of course politics. But the unfortunate reality of these words is that either writing or reading them won’t change the fact that I, and I assume you also, will still remain on the outside of the backrooms and restricted offices where the so called “ground rules” which supposedly govern the topics about which these words speak, are “laid down” by “face hidden aristocrats” whose arrogance and sense of self-worth would probably have astounded even the peasants of 1790s Paris.   

            And after I’d written these words, I asked my friends Rashon and Ralph to critique them. And their foremost evaluation was their questioning of why certain influences were chosen for discussion here while others weren’t. And they admitted that this piece had prompted them to once again consider that basic universal question:  How can mortals know what’s right from what isn’t?

            And I said “For a long time humans have had a basically agreed upon code of conduct. And it emanated from the most important things they believed in.”

            But then they responded “Oh, today I guess only ‘the establishment’ can tell us what’s right. And of course, only it can likewise inform us of how to live in accordance with what’s right.”

            And I said “But what if, as in the case of Surells, those establishment types disdain you? How then will you learn what's right, and what’s bulletin board material?”

And the statue in New York’s harbor said “My original message, written on my pedestal still stands, but now I must add this:  ‘Don’t give me illegal aliens and so-called refugees who don’t wish to assimilate amidst the culture of my nation, and who don’t want to learn my English language, or worst of all, may potentially terrorize my populace!’”

            And I guess the people of America are excited about 2016. And I guess the saddest and starkest realization which can ever befall a seeker of order, or at least a seeker of a return to order, is that those who are now in charge, or who will soon be in charge of the great attempt to right past wrongs, are deficient in their capabilities to achieve such a righting. And that’s the unfortunate matter of fact which now faces the voters of 2016 America.

            And – Americans are saying this to those who run America's major political parties for basically their own gain:  “Don’t think the American populace is so stupid that it would vote for someone whom, at your party’s nominating convention, you may attempt to foist upon us as your party’s presidential candidate even though he or she didn’t even participate in the primary elections, or dropped out of them prior to your convention, or finished second or third behind another of your candidates.”

            But you know, one can only spend so much time in contemplation of political matters, and then surely that one’s mind must stray to those lords of literature who from behind their desks in Manhattan say “Watch out for vagueness. And always tell all people, if not at least what they want to hear, then surely what they can, in simple formats understand.”

            And so today we must pander to both the great read and unread masses. And we must accept “ain’t” instead of isn’t, and “invite” instead of invitation, and “install” instead of installation, etc.. And we have to be sure we don’t allow too much “color” to creep into our writing. And we have to accept the fact that the great censors may stop us from seeing certain videos or web postings. And we must realize that if our writings stray too far from their supposed central themes, they’ll be marked with some sort of identifying mark; after all, we wouldn’t want any innocents to be reading along, and then have to “shift gears” so to speak, in a manner I’d reckon might be akin to the 1950’s man who needed to down shift the manual transmission in his 55 Chev just before he laid a huge black mark on the pavement.

            And last night I dreamed a beautiful lady accompanied me to the opera. But she got up and walked out at intermission. And just before the performance began again, another good looking woman took her place at my side. I guess they must have decided to switch partners while they were in the ladies’ room. And of course I didn’t speak to the new woman by my side then, but I was glad that at least she and her friend had been able to decide upon their switch while using a bathroom reserved for their sex only. After all, nowadays some people of one sex say they need to use the other sex’s bathroom because they identify with that sex etc..

            But despite many serious developments in what might be termed “the outside world,” the gods of correctness continue their aggressive behaviors. And they don’t like people like me. And they don’t want to hear or read about the fact that their overwhelming arrogance is finally beginning to stifle their relevance. And yes, it’s already happened. Not long ago they awoke in their chambers of imagined significance, but real affluence, and realized that the world didn’t belong to them anymore. Now it belonged to outsiders, and maybe even outlanders.

            And so they pledged they’d hold fast to their stereotypes and rigid styles despite the fact that so much was different now. Yet, they also correctly noted that not all suppositions of the past have been negated. After all, people weren’t stupid then either. And they thought and did what they felt was right.

            Yet, some of them weren’t right. And as is the case today, some wished to tell others what to say, think, and do. And one of them, Karl, was especially wrong when he said that societies could somehow supply their citizens according to their needs based upon the work performed by those who had the ability (and desire) to work. But he must have forgotten that some people are lazy, and that some others believe the world owes them a living. Oh, maybe he believed his totalitarian type government would force such types to be productive.

            Don’t people know that without some type of compensation or tribute mortals won’t joyfully want to (although because of religious or political reasons they may say they do) use their God given abilities to help and/or enrich others who either don’t have the capacity or gumption to fend for themselves? And can’t they realize that if any society takes away the incentives for its common men and common women to do what’s right, then those commoners will see no reason to do it?   

            But yes, many people are disabled, either physically or mentally, or both, and down the road they’ll continue to need the assistance of others. Yet, right there – right there in that obligation of certain mortals to others lies the responsibility of mankind, i.e. to be steadfast in the orderly transference of time and the peaceful completion of human lives which exist within that time.  

            And the man who told us why the faces which appear on cereal boxes are always smiling feels alienated today. And just now, in a dream, he can see the large cat looking out the window at a landscape of raindrops. And his mind strays then to the “people of summer.” They live apart from the trials and tribulations of 2016. They live in the sunshine of fantasy. And they’re all – they’re all so beautiful! Yes, they’re so beautiful, but nowadays a sad and hard-core reality threatens even them and their lifestyles. And why are they and their existences threatened in 2016? It must be because the working classes no longer have the time or money to subsidize lives and lifestyles only marginally rooted in life as it’s currently lived by today’s great middle class.

            But the man who’s now joined the domesticated predator as she looks out the window didn’t tell us why certain images symbolize phony existences only to flatter himself. God gave him the ability to see that at least half of what passes as interaction between mortals is actually posturing for viewpoints which necessarily must become political, or else advertising which attempts to convince all classes of mankind that one particular thing or person is better than another thing or person of similar characteristics. So, given that so much of what’s heard isn’t really comprehended; and also, given that so many reasons which either cause, allow, or necessitate certain occurrences to happen are likewise often either completely or partially misunderstood, probably it’s best for mortals to especially concentrate upon all they can simultaneously see and fathom, hear and fathom, and read and fathom. 

            And who can deny that the stewards of Earth’s greatest nation have not served it well in recent years? And who can claim that he or she didn’t wish that in 2016 he or she would find someone who’d constructively lead America for the next four or eight years? Well, it appears now that such a someone may be difficult to find this year. But since this is of such great importance to us at this time, let’s say it one more time:  This year should either major political party, at its’ national convention, attempt to bypass the will of the electorate by nominating someone as its party’s presidential candidate who either had earlier dropped out of the presidential primary race, had never even entered it, or had competed in it but had finished second or third behind that party’s front runner at the time of the convention, then that candidate should not even be considered worthy of anyone’s vote in the general election.