The Resurrection

Good Grief.....
I have managed to resurrect, or more accurately find, my old blog account.

I am still alive and doing nicely, though I gained a few pounds over the last several years.
I have also reached the impossibly old age of 70 1/2 years. Only occasionally do I ponder that reality, but in writing that fact the reality of it hits forcefully. More about all that and what has happened in the last four and a half years since I posted will come as the days go by.

I have rarely thought of this blog since I last posted a message, but of late I have felt the intense need
to express in writing my deep alarm about the political climate in America. The very act of writing demands clarity of thought...an organizing of words to express meaning in a logical and understandable way. It is communication in a form that is governed by a set of accepted rules.
That doesn't imply that all writing is an expression of truth. It is simply a way of passing on to the reader a writer's thoughts. As such the writer is attempting to explain, convince, cajole, or entertain the reader.

With that said, I want to start out by giving insight to what drives my way of perceiving the world and pursuing, if that is the right word, the truth, or arriving at a truthful understanding of what is going on around me. I have found that my old assumptions that most people hold the same set of values and possess the same logical approach to the truth is naïve. I didn't just discover this human reality, but it has come painfully to the forefront when trying to understand the what is going on  in our society and country today....The era of "Trumpism".

I was raised in a Catholic family and attended Catholic grammar school and then went to a Catholic High School. The Catholic brand of Christianity, which I think is more accepting of human foible and much less fundamentalist in nature than many Protestant religions, shaped my thinking
about the world and sin and salvation. There was no emphasis on fire and brimstone. While Satan existed and Hell was the reward for certain unforgiven sins, at least the Evil One wasn't lurking on coffee cup logos and in ambiguous ways open to interpretation. I always remember that "truth" was important and lying was wrong. Treating other human beings with love, consideration and forgiveness was a Christian ideal and duty. And that obligation, happily taken on, extended to all human beings, regardless of color, nationality and religious creed. Even the fringe members of society were included, though one might have to hold one's nose in extending the same loving hand.

Then I went to a Jesuit university. Oh boy! Some of my John Birch Society relatives knew I was lost and would become a commie-pinko liberal. That's when I began to wake up. Hell, my cousin was in great danger when he applied to the local JC. Any higher education institution was a hot bed of liberal brainwashing professors.

The Jesuits ran a great educational program, still steeped in Catholicism, but the bedrock foundation of the University was the pursuit of truth. Required courses in logic, philosophy, and the art of analytic thinking resulted in a graduate's achieving a minor degree in Philosophy.

My major was History. Now, many people may think that a History degree consists in reading about battles, revolutions, the rise and fall of various civilizations, and remembering dates....like Columbus discovered the New World in 1492. Actually, while all of the latter is part of the course work, the real thrust in the study of "History" is the pursuit of truth in the face of myth and distortion. It is the study of human behavior and motivation and the impact on societies through time of those two forces.
The study of history, within the noted context, seeks to draw parallels between then, and now.

Then I attended three semesters of law school at night. Aside from finding out I did not want to be a lawyer, I was schooled in legal analysis and logic. The search for "Truth" is an interesting endeavor at the legal level. I came away with a deep appreciation for the law and legal thinking and logic.
Above all, one finds that there may always be two sides to a conflict or issue. Evidence courses focused on the differentiation of hearsay from fact, and on the necessity to avoid the introduction of speculation to legal thinking.

Most importantly, one comes away with an enhanced understanding of the important  role our Constitution plays as the foundation for virtually all of American law.

So, in summary, my education and upbringing has irreversibly led me to approach life with a certain mindset and analytical approach. I am not bragging. I am not saying that my conclusions are the only conclusions one might draw from a set of circumstances or events.

Future blog commentary will be a way of helping me to "get it straight" in my own head. It is meant solely for me and not for others.....