Panic Stations

Sweaty palms, nervous jitters…trembling at the prospect of what’s ahead.  Not for tonight’s presidential debaters – they’re too experienced to get worked up about stage fright…and old enough to not care.  No, the rest of the world seems practically petrified that the state of the world is hanging in the balance.  Everyone is on tenterhooks.  In Panic Stations.  

Here in the US, we all think that the outcome of this election will determine the ultimate fate of our union and, indeed, the entire world.  It might usher in another World War.  News Flash: war is already raging.  

Obvious are the regional conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza.  Yes, they might indeed expand into broader conflagrations with aligned participants from other regions.  But a proxy war is still war.  The match has already been struck.  The US Navy has been very involved in shooting down drones and missile launches against Israel and in the Red Sea.  

Also obvious is the “Border War.”  Also very real and costly.  Lives are being disrupted, if not ruined.  But it’s not just the US border.  European countries have been grappling with a migration crisis for years.  Just ask Greece, Italy, France, Germany.  Developed nations all want to be compassionate and lend a hand to those suffering under oppressive conditions, but everything comes at cost.  Economically and politically.  

Less obvious is the Cyber War that has been happening under our noses (or fingertips) for years.  It’s a relentless battle that is very real and very costly.  And very global.  China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, et.al, attack us daily.  Hourly.  Ask anyone in the DOD or the CTO of any decent-sized company.  Worse, the assailants recruit US-born hackers to help.  They’re usually just smart kids who like the challenge and think it’s ok to “stick it to the man.”  For them it’s just a game.  

Narcotics and human trafficking is certainly no game and it’s also been happening all around us.  I’ve read that human trafficking today dwarfs the African slave trade at its peak.  The US and UK are debating on reparations for 150 year-old transgressions while today’s human traffickers move freely in the shadowy grey market of “free” commerce.  It’s appalling.  That is a war worth fighting, which we have been…but with limited results.

But the most obvious of all wars is the one between ourselves.  In the US, we seem to be at war with each other.  We’ve picked our sides and dug our trenches.  The side in the other trench is misguided, wrong, or just downright evil.  The space in between – “no man’s land” – must be very wide, because it’s impossible to see each other eye-to-eye.  Nor do we hear each other.  Hmmmm…see no evil?  Hear no evil?  Ha!!!  At least we get to SPEAK evil!  What fun!

But we must each ask ourselves: is our hatred of our opponents stronger and more obvious than our fondness for those we love?  

We are all looking for justice, if not salvation.  We will surely find neither in any of our institutions.  Putting our faith in any institution — or its representative — ultimately leads to disappoint.  If we all we do is look for justice, then we’re less likely to give it.  It will cause self-pity and resentment.  That’s what causes upheavals and revolutions and wars.  Panic Stations.

Instead of holding our breath on the outcome of this debate or election, let’s instead take a deep breath.  Yeah, let’s breathe.  It really will be ok.  Things change and evolve.  And swing back and forth.  Nothing in this world lasts forever…except Heaven.  Which is actually other-worldly.  Eternity is in progress.  Everything will be ok…if we trust that it will be and don’t murder each other just because we don’t get our way.  Our own individual justice.  Which we think takes priority over someone else’s justice.  Or God’s justice. 

If we cannot love God, then we can at least love each other.  Not what they represent or their affiliation…but them as people.  As children we all once were.  And still remain in the eyes of our creator.  

In Heaven there are no Panic Stations.