While I've been spending the holidays toning up my chopsticks skills (Tuesday-Korean; Wednesday-Japanese; Thursday-Chinese vegan), the rest of the world has apparently been going to hell in a handbasket.
Let's see if I can catch up. Elon Musk, the president-non-elect, learned that even the richest man in the world can't force a few hundred career politicians to shut down the United States government over the holidays. His sidekick and ceremonial president, Donald Trump, learned that those same politicians wouldn't give him a free credit card by suspending the debt ceiling in order to keep the government open. Worthwhile lessons for all involved, including the American people who would have suffered the most.
Not to be distracted by reality, Trump also fantasized about annexing Canada as the 51st state, seizing the Panama Canal from China and buying Greenland from Denmark. Canada, Panama, China and Denmark were not amused. The Danes, in fact, wondered what the going price might be on a somewhat worn U.S. democracy. The Mexican president had already told Trump to cool it on the tariff talk.
Meanwhile, Russian president Vladimir Putin ignored Trump's election campaign claim that he'd end the war in Ukraine as soon as he was elected, never mind got sworn in. Didn't happen. In fact, North Korea sent in some troops to help Russia fight its increasingly costly war and Putin, struggling with losses in Ukraine, abandoned his buddy Assad in Syria and let rebel forces take over the government there virtually overnight.
Meanwhile, the other Korea, the supposedly Democratic one, saw its president declare martial law, then back down swiftly after massive demonstrations, broke out in the streets, only to eventually be impeached. But wait, there's more. The acting president appointed to bring order from the chaos, refused to appoint judges to overhear the impeachment proceedings against the martial law president. So the acting president was impeached. I have no idea where this is going, and I'm not sure the Koreans do either.
Meanwhile, Russia's not-nearly-as-efficient-as -everyone-thought military machine was suspected in the downing of an Azerbaijan passenger jet that crashed in Kazakhstan, killing 38 people on board. Analysts suggested a missile from Russia's air defense system struck the plane.
Those Russian missiles had been used to shoot down drones flown from Ukraine. There was no word on whether the Russians were suspected in the sudden disappearance of all those hundreds of drones that were mysteriously flying over New Jersey for the past couple of weeks. And our government still wasn't saying anything at all about them -- the drones, not the Russians -- except that we shouldn't worry.
So I'm going to try not to.
At least I don't live in Mozambique where more than 6,000 prisoners, including Isis terrorists, escaped from prison as part of nationwide civil unrest over widespread voting irregularities in the country's recent presidential election. And boy doesn't that sound familiar?
France avoided the bloodshed, but after a vote of no confidence removed the prime minister, a new prime minister has named a new government, fate as yet to be determined.
So these are apparently the times that try our souls, people. But I wonder, where are the songs of protest? We Shall Overcome! Never mind where all the flowers have gone, where are the Woody Guthries, Pete Seegers, the Bob Dylans for Pete's sake!
Tik-tok and Beyonce' and Taylor Swift don't cover all the disharmony.
President Joe Biden just formally recognized the bald eagle as the official national bird. Long overdue, I'd say, and fitting. But that proud, beautiful bird needs a new "Yankee Doodle Dandy", one for the 21st century. Please!
Meanwhile, I'm going to keep working out with my chopsticks.
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