A Dream Remembered...

 

Today, we honor the memory of Dr. Martin Luther King.  And, of what he represented.  A dream that one day, this nation would celebrate the true meaning of its creed.  That all human beings are created equal, regardless of race, color or creed.

There was a time when that dream...noble and profound as it is...would be considered as something akin to science fiction.  Many might still see it as such.

But then, that is the true creed of America, is it not?  Not equality at the end of life, perhaps, but certainly at the beginning of it.  "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal."

Do we still believe in the truth of those words, the meaning of which resonate through the words of Dr. King?

On the day we remember Dr. King's dream, how does the Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave stand in the world?

Our democracy, once a shining beacon to the world, seems now to hang in the balance, fighting for its life.  Not against foreign despots, but against our fellow Americans.  Predominantly white Americans who waved Confederate and neo-Nazi flags as they stormed our nation's capitol and cried for the murder of elected officials.

That is how far we've come since Dr. King voiced his dream to cheering crowds so long ago?

That dream lives, in the hearts of many.  But, hate lives in the hearts of many, too.  Hate, despair, anger...and a desire to build walls, not bridges.  To look only to ourselves, not to help those less fortunate.  And, to see only the worst in those different from ourselves.

The dream of a better America, an idealized America seems more under siege at this juncture of history than ever before.  With the presidency of Barak Obama, that dream seemed to advance a step further towards realization.

With the election of Donald Trump, the country took a horrifying step backward.  Now, like a wanderer slowly regaining his direction, the country takes a step back towards hope, back towards idealism.

But, the road ahead is rocky and unsure.  The journey along it may or may not succeed.  But, the dream is the beacon that leads us in the right direction.  That's what matters.

Dr. King promised a path to the Promised Land.  The quest is long.  But, the direction at the heart of the quest is what defines us.  

 

Science Fiction Short Stories

 Fans of Good SCIENCE FICTION:

Check out these collections of short stories by 2 talented SF writers:

SUPERLUMINAL: Sci-Fi at the Speed of Imagination

By Justin Sewall

https://www.amazon.com/SUPERLUMINAL-Sci-Fi-at-Speed-Imagination/dp/B08NQHB5DL

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Alien Puzzle Boxes: Twenty short science fiction stories 

By Jeremy Lichtman

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08RY2VZ9Y

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Short stories by these and many other talented science fiction authors can be found at:

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Drop in, read, enjoy, and share your writing talent as a contestant.

13 days to history's next chapter...

In fiction, the story unfolds, chapter by chapter, building towards a conclusion. Life can be like that, too. History unfolds, chapter by chapter, the outcome shaping the future of nations and cultures. We look for patterns in history which shape our beliefs and cultures. The nature of good and evil. Of truth and lies. What we value in life.

 The American dream is a young one. One that changed the world, and ushered in a new age of hope. Hope that the people can choose their own path, in effect their own future through democratic rule of law. Is that dream now, once again, in danger of dissolving into carnage? Last night, we saw a sight that will forever remain burned into our collective consciousness. The sight of an angry mob storming the Congressional building. The seat and symbol of our democracy. Who were the insurgents? People who have lost all faith in the institutuions of American law and government. Who believe the words of a pseudo-populist demagogue who condemns and slanders the system itself rather than admit political defeat. The sheer madness of the moment lay in the hypocrisy of a movement that claims to treasure law and order, which condemns and even brutally suppresses protests by African American citizens challenging racism and destroying monuments to white patriarchy while itself brutally vandalizing the nation's capital and disrupting the system of government they claim to revere. One can only imagine the extent of police brutality that might have occurred had this riot been led by Black Lives Matter instead of the Proud Boys.

 What flags do these pro-Trump insurgents carry? Some carry the American flag (whatever that still means to them). Some carry the Confederate flag. The symbol of rebellion, racism, and slavery. Most, of course, carry the Trump banner. The cult of one man who, it seems, must rule this country or destroy it. White supremacists, misogynists, neo-nazis and Klansmen invariably rally to the Trump banner. That is no coincidence. These insurgents refuse to believe in the system because it will not give them what they want. What they want is what Trump has promised them. Isolation. Walls to hide behind. A system of white rule in which racist brutality is practiced but never acknowledged. Where the past is romanticized and never questioned. Where science is suppressed, truth malleable and all things unwelcome...global climate change, pandemics...are simply denied. The path to disaster and desolation.

 At its heart, the age of Trump is based on racism, homophobia and above all...anger and ignorance. Will this insurgency continue and grow beyond the end of the Trump presidency? More urgently, what will Trump do next in the 13 days remaining until the end of his presidency? 13 days with one man's finger on the nuclear trigger. A man with no respect for the system, the republic, freedom or truth. History holds its breath through each of those 13 days to come. Like a prelude to the conclusion of some fictional melodrama. This time reminds us how fragile our democracy truly is. How our arrogant comfort in all our wealth and military might comes to nothing if we turn on eachother. And,our national unity seems now undeniably marred by fissures, racial, economic and ideological which seem to strain at the fragile veneer of our supposedly indivisible nation. One nation under God? Whose God?

 Could America be at the brink of a second civil war? Who would win? What would follow? Could our nation even survive in any unified form? 

 13 days and counting...