Mindfulness and Chaos

                As the Senate Republicans gather in cloak rooms deciding how, exactly, to end constitutional democracy, the temptation is to plunge into the hour by hour, minute by minute insanity.  It’s addictive.  Who has the votes?  Who might testify?  What might they say?  It’s understandable to drawn to the spectacle, but that’s not where the action is.  Whatever they decide and however they decide to do it, doesn’t really matter anymore.  The gig is up.  We all know how this movie ends, and it’s time to focus on what’s next.  This system is broken.  It is no longer democratic, even in the limited terms it was supposed to be.  As we pick our way through the rubble for something to build on, it’s important to take a longer, more mindful view of what just happened.  We have to step away from the constant noise and confusion that is Trump and reassess what we have to do next.  It’s so easy to get caught up in the constant barrage of venial distractions that prevent us from focusing on something bigger.

                This is a historic moment.  It can get much worse from here or this can be the point where real democracy, a more radical democracy, emerges.  What is no longer possible is a continuation of the myth that the formal structures of democracy still work.  As you read this, Moscow Mitch is choking the last breath out of that corpse.  Trump is guilty, even the Republicans are admitting that now, but he will not be removed.  The only way to get rid of him is to beat him.  But we are not one candidate or one election away from rebuilding democracy.  The best we can do is stop the bleeding and cauterize the wound.  We are a long, long way from fixing the system.  Losing in November means years in the dark as a formidable but mostly powerless resistance.  I prefer the first scenario, so it’s time to stop watching the trial and start thinking about how to win.

                As Iowa looms next week, there is a chaos there that needs to be avoided, too.  The worst mistake we can make is to assume that any of these candidates has some magic wand that will fix what’s wrong.  Charisma is less important than the ability to create a vision that is inclusive.  The problems are complex, and solution is not simple.  We should stop forcing these candidates into arcane arguments about policy that will never become legislation.  We need a coherent party and not factions of self-righteous purists arguing over details.  We need principles more than we need policy, and we need values that span the differences between people who want the same general outcomes.  Our politics has been consumed by an aggressive and poisonous sense of conflict and chaos.  What are the broad principles that unite us?  We can argue over details later, after we have united.  As it looks now, we’re more likely to descend into factional infighting.

                Usually we think of mindfulness as an individual quality, something that grounds a person.  But I think there has always been a social sense of mindfulness, too.  The concern with the goodness of the Emperor is the same concern as the goodness of the people.  For us, I think goodness is the expression of an aspirational direction.  How do we promote the good?  How do we get better?  We have little patience for the journey anymore.  We want quick and decisive answers that solve everything.  We’re not going to get them.  Being mindful is to be willing to take the journey slowly, with both principle and intent.  We are in the midst of a fundamental change, one that will either create a new era or end in disaster.  This is no time to panic, but it is also no time to be complacent.  It is a time to be mindful and fully present.

                Mitch and the boys are caught in a Faustian bargain.  They can’t win, but they can destroy everything.  They will not turn back the clock on a broken patriarchal system.  They can’t escape the reality of climate change or growing disparity of wealth.  Their time is almost over.  We need to be calm but resolute in the face of this challenge.  There are more of us, and we’re the only ones with a future, but we have to claim it.  We should step away from the fray for a moment, gather ourselves, and focus on what we want to be.  It’s been a long time since we’ve asked ourselves that question.