Is there anybody else disappointed that the Mayan end of the world calamity didn’t come true?
Over the last few months I found myself considering what to do in the case of a natural disaster, geo-political upheaval, or some such world altering issue. Part of me was truly ready to have to have a go at living a new life with new issues. Part of me would like nothing better than to use my skills both at making things and martial arts to survive in a world gone crazy.
Well maybe it was mostly the fact that I wouldn’t have to come to work, fill orders, deal with customers, import export issues, returns, late suppliers, deadlines, … my the list goes on.
Even other issues like gun control. Will I end up aging and being defenseless against a stronger, younger opponent? Will I need to lay off employees and restructure since their is no way I can afford health insurance for them, let alone myself? How big a fee will ASCAP charge me to let young bands some and play music at my coffee shop?
Heck, wouldn’t the world be a simpler place if the only question I had to deal with is, Do I have enough supplies laid by to survive the winter? Wow, and if I shoot the armed guys trying to take my food, I wouldn’t have to deal with anyone wanting to sue me or put me in jail for defending my property.
Many questions were easier back in the days of the American frontier. Yes they were tough times, but they didn’t have to consider whether or not wheat was making them fat.
The world, though, is changing. Not by any great degree. Not by a huge Tsunami covering the globe, Not by any asteroid coming from space, but by the very things that drive man on.
Once survival is assured, most men look to comfort. As they become comfortable they turn their thoughts to sex, from sex to God, and ultimately to power and finally to greed. Our world is full of power hungry, greedy men. Many will stop at nothing to get what they have set their sight on. Be it your watch, your life savings, or the ability to force you to their will.
But we won’t see our politicians or the drug lords driving a Dodge Neon. No, they have power and prestige in their places and they drive the best, they have nice houses in secure places. They have people to serve their every need. We, who don’t have so much look for more. We worry and fret about how we can have more for less work and we covet those signs of wealth and security.
But at the end of the world, you can bet if you need a car to survive, a barely running Neon with doughnut for one wheel would be like the best Rolls Royce.
When your life is at stake, do you really care if the place you lay your head is a mansion or a cave as long as it is secure?
The fantasy about all old bets being off and you survive by your wits and skill, is an old one. We see them in every fantasy novel, every spy thriller, all the movies. It is what MAN is made for. Damn it sure beats working for a living.
But tomorrow we once again have to address the questions; Is socialism ultimately good for the world? Should my right to keep and practice with arms be infringed upon in the interest of public safety? Why aren’t law enforcement officers held to the same standard as a citizen defending his home? Why does the ASCAP get to extort money from my business and yet not have to pay the artists they are supposed to be protecting?
So yes, I am somewhat disappointed that the world didn’t change. I am ready. It might still come.