By Michael Shook
And so, here we are, barely a month away from the BIG DAY. I speak, of course, of November 5th. In a season that (so far) has seen two assassination attempts on one candidate, and the sitting President firmly, actively running, then dropping out (or being forced out) over concerns he’s dotty – all amid numerous declarations from both sides that to vote for the other side is to welcome the collapse of the Republic – it seems fitting that the vote will come on the day celebrated in England as “Guy Fawkes Day.”
Fawkes was a key conspirator in the “Gunpowder Plot.” He was arrested while guarding 36 barrels of gunpowder, placed under Parliament in the hopes of blowing King James I sky-high, along with most of the English government. After the failure of the plot, King James reminded his people that monarchs rule by Divine right, and what better proof of that than his narrow escape? It could only be Divine intervention (this sounds familiar). As I write this, no one has yet attempted to blow up the Capitol. Thank goodness.
Of the presidential elections I’ve been witness to, this is more memorable than most. The only one comparable in my life was in 1968, when the country was tearing itself apart. The nightly news featured images of city after city in flames, as 120 endured violent riots that year. Demonstrators-turned-rioters hurled rocks, bricks, and the occasional Molotov cocktail at police and National Guardsmen.
The Democratic Convention was almost a war outside the International Amphitheater in Chicago. Listing demands, students at various universities took staff hostages, some even held at knifepoint. Organizations like the Students for a Democratic Society, Weather Underground, the Jewish Defense League, Black Panthers, and others (including unaffiliated actors), lit off bombs. There were also the tragic assassinations of the Rev. Dr. King, and Robert Kennedy.
So what is it about this election? Many are deeply worried about the outcome of the vote, whichever way it goes, but all most of us can do is cast a vote. Then it’s out of our hands. Which to me renders worry useless. Concern is good but worry, no.
Perhaps that’s where the anxiety lies. Most of life happens to us; neither you nor I have any control over it, and turmoil of any kind emphasizes that harsh reality. With endless cycles of “news” swirling around like one hurricane after another, it can be hard to keep one’s perspective. Disaster lurks all round.
But the truth is, life has never been better for more people than it is now. That is an objective, measurable fact. To take one example, about 130,000 people each day manage to lift themselves out of dire poverty. And that’s been going on continuously for the last 30 years. Modern medicine, agriculture, and technology have enabled not just millions, but billions more to live into adulthood, and to have a shot at making a life. And those millions living in democratic nations have unprecedented freedoms – never before have so many had such an array of choice in their lives, to do what they want, how they want, when they want.
Are there severe problems? Of course, and there always will be. Is it often two steps forward, one back (or worse)? Absolutely. But enormous progress has been made, and if we keep faith in our ability to deal with what arises, if we keep from panicking, if we “fear not” and continue to do the work that needs to be done, progress will continue to be made, however slowly.
Now, I will do what should not be done without first asking – give advice – but since you are still reading, I will take that as a “yes.”
Step one: To relieve the worry, you must disconnect. Turn off the phone. I’m not joking. TURN. IT. OFF. Unless you are the President, you are not so important that you must be available 24-7. If you think that untrue, you are deluded, and ought to seek help. That’s not a joke, either.
Step two: Stop watching news from television, streaming, Facebook, TikTok, Instagram, X, and anything Silicon Valley has come up with, and instead read a couple of newspapers or magazines. Or, if you can’t stand holding something made of paper in your hands, find Substacks, or something, remembering that references are your friend! Choose one from the left, and one from the right. Feel free to not read any of it, even for days at a time.
“But how will I know what’s going on?!” You will. You’ll know what’s going on in your neighborhood, your community, and your county; enough to make good decisions about voting (or just living). What you won’t be is encumbered by what passes for news these days. You won’t be inflamed by some troll. You won’t be lamenting a disaster that occurred halfway around the world that has nothing to do with you, about which you can do nothing.
Election Day will come and go, and life will go on, and we will deal with it. Absent the stress, you will think more clearly, and be able to gratefully enjoy this incredible gift called “being alive.”
You could even take a walk (sans earbuds) listening to the world around you, seeing what is around you, right now.
Imagine that.
