Enerhodar is a small village in Ukraine, one of many that are being shelled and rocketed to death at the hands of the Russian war criminals led by Putin and his sycophants. Knowing that they have adherents in our own American government is shocking, but actually should not be so for there is no difference in the ultimate goal for Putin led Russia and the current GOP leadership and membership. That goal: the end of democracy within the borders of their respective countries and a solid, irreversible hold on power for these oh so not leaders.
In the name of that goal, in the pursuit of that goal, there is a growing scorched earth policy. To hell with everything as long as we can continue apace with our nefarious plans is the apparent SOP - standard operating procedure. So imbued, drunk, with their victories, they ramp up; so caught up are they in their lemming run that they invite all, drag in all, and by the wayside are shed the shreds, the challenged, besieged, trampled upon remnants of a once thriving American democracy and a nascent never deeply rooted attempt to have democracy in Russia. A country seemingly addicted to having a bully, a heartless, soulless head of government, be it Tsar or Communist or any chosen name. The end goal, the end result is or will be the same.
In yet another frightening collusion between Life and Art, the co-creator of the popular House of the Dragon assures fans that "[season] two will hit the rhythms people came to expect from the middle run of Game of Thrones, but it will have been earned, and viewers will feel the tragedies because we put the work in."
Then I wonder, what of the promises we are hearing made by traitors masquerading as patriots. They have indeed 'put the work in' and are succeeding. They tout their so-called love of the electorate even as they strip them of social safety netting and rights, at an ever-increasing shrieking rant of hate. Worse, this raucous shrieking of the crowd has absorbed within it the very targets of their hate, feeding on their weaknesses and confusion, on the fault cracks within their souls. They become the willing dupes of their own destroyers, thinking that acquiescence will avoid the trip to the ovens for them. They are blind to the history lessons and the uselessness of that tactic. Time and again the original collaborators are squeezed out, killed, displaced, imprisoned, as the battle for control rages on.
Where, I wonder, are the dragon riders we so desperately need these days. The Children of the Thunderdome sang "we don't need another hero", but we surely do. Bonnie Tyler, in her raspy voice, called out, asking, where her knight is. Our knights are gone, disappeared, absorbed within the daily scrums of this war between democracy and autocracy. Between good and evil. Yes. Just that - Good vs. Evil.
I contrast the women of the current GOP, the Kari Lakes, the Marjorie Taylor Greenes, the Palins, and the rest of their ilk, cooperating with the very ones who are stripping their gender of control over their own bodies and souls with the brave women of Iran, the courageous women under Taliban rule who continue to educate their girls risking their very lives. We come up terribly short, falling further and further behind, dragging us all downwards with them.
As for the Kanye Wests, the Herschel Walkers, I simply cannot fathom their motivations other than they have lost sight of their own beings and worth, cannot see themselves in the mirror of reality, their innate worth, and are totally subsumed within the barricades of hate. They spout antisemitic canards at the drop of a hat, threatening death. Well, sorry, been there, done that, and we categorically refuse to fall in line. Kevin McCarthy in the name of his ambition has sold his soul and is now lost within a fog of his own making. The election deniers, the supporters of soul breaking, crushing lies, shattering democracy, the judges at every level, who have connived, lost their integrity and sold us all downriver.
We are all Enerhodar. We are all being shelled out of practical, life allowing existence. The infrastructure of our lives is falling, destroyed by rockets real and figurative.
At this point I wonder if we have lost the war despite small victories and retrievals fought for, in land and rights. I wonder if we indeed have surpassed that deadly point of no return. Frankly, if all those election deniers, lie supporters win, take over the election apparatus in too any states, well, where do we then turn for help? Where do we, can we, survive and thrive again? Can we do it all over again, in a shattered nation, in a country of lost souls, wandering in search of new homes, new havens, their former ones gone, destroyed by enemies within and without.
I have long been shouting, pleading, whispering, writing of the dangers to democracy here in the good old USA. At first, I was a voice alone; unfortunately, there are now many recognizing the truth of imminent danger, but again - too little too late? I deeply, sincerely, hope not, but honestly, optimism is in short supply, shrinking every day, and the supply line is not in good working order for future deliveries.
We are indeed all Enerhodar. We all hear the noise, see the smoke, smell the ashes as they waft downwards. The question is - can we rebuild all our Enerhodars, large and small, physical and theoretical? Can we? Do we actually want to? Or have we lost ourselves for too long and the road back fading away at ever increasing pace. We need to choose a different city, from a time of hope and optimism. We need to find, if not actually reach, a new Camelot, look not back at the disappearing road, but forward, to a new, stronger, better road, with success possible. At the very least, get back on the road towards its gates. Let us open the gates of hope, of progress, regain what we have lost, and go further than that. If not- well, read the tea leaves, read the bones, check with the Oracle, and know the truth.
We allowed it all. We enabled, even perhaps desired it. We did. We most certainly did.
We, and only we, can reverse this state of affairs.
If we truly want to. Before too long.
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