Seth Haines's Blog, page 5

Gone Fishing

As you may recall, I’m in the middle of a sort of series about chasing the One Thing as it relates to politics. That said, I’ve gone fishing for the week. Come back next week and we’ll continue our exploration.

               

Complexity Defies Political Absolutes

I’m continuing my series of chasing the One Thing in the realm of politics.

Linen Season, 2020

Here is the rub: When you follow after the One Thing—the ultimate Good—you’re bound to see all the roadblocks the world erects. For instance, assume you’d like a new pair of linen pants because it’s summer and linen is, after all, the greenest of green fabrics. In an attempt to advance the ultimate Good—stewarding the gift of creation—you find the perfect pair online at a rather large retailer. The fabr...

Creating the World You Want to Inherit (Yes, This is About Politics)

Fall, 1984; Fall, 1988; Fall, 1992; Fall, 1996; ad infinitum.

Every four years, the candidates come out swinging. They, like Olympic athletes, have put in the long hours. They’ve trained, honed their quips, their zings. Their arrows are sharp. Daggers, too. And they stand on the world stage and cut each other. World without mercy. Amen.

Elections are blood sport, and if you don’t believe me ask any of the losers—Mondale, Dukakis, Bush I, Dole, Gore, Kerry, McCain, Romney, Hillary. It’s survival ...

Where Are the Mourning Politicians?

Due to work constraints, I took a break last week. I’m back, continuing my series of chasing the One Thing in the realm of politics.

Late Spring, 1992

Los Angeles burned.

I watched with passing interest from the living room of Middle America. Why the fires, the looting, the riots? Rodney King—a black man—had been kicked and beaten by a group of police officers, and the event had been caught on tape by a bystander. The officers were charged. Tried. Ultimately acquitted. And in the fury of this misc...

The Politically Poor in Spirit

Summer, 1992

In the church, a ceiling-sized flag was unfurled. It was God and Country Sunday, and the stars and stripes hung over every congregant. The choir led God and Country songs. The preacher preached a God and Sunday sermon. And to say I remember the content of those songs and sermons would be an imaginative fiction. Still, I was left with the distinct impression: Morality, Christianity, and the success of the American experiment were inextricably linked.

History of wars, slavery, poverty,...

The Politics of Hate, Hunger, and Pride

Summer, 2020

Yesterday, I wrote of the 2016 election, how so much of my pre-vote wrangling and writing was driven by some need: to be prophetic; to be relevant; to be right. Looking back, perhaps I was prophetic, relevant, and right, but in the end, what difference did it make? Did I influence the course of the election? (Clearly not.) Did I advance the ultimate Good, the “One Thing.” (For more on the One Thing, do not miss yesterday’s post.)

Heading into another parade of horribles—What else is a...

The One Thing That Governs My Politics

“But purity of heart is to will one thing.”

~Soren Kierkegaard Summer, 2016

You may remember the heat. The sweltering news cycle. The churn and boil. I do. I was a man on a mission.

I’d evaluated the political landscape, noted the sparse options, and found some were sparser than others. A new kind of public figure dominated the news cycle, one my grandfather might have described as “wearing a silk suit without underwear.” The illusion of flash and bang. The cloying sugar of nationalism without ...

There Are Still Beautiful Things, Even in a World on Fire

Fires

We are small things, each of us,

living in a world burning at the edges.

As stars, as fireflies, as Earth’s center:

we are the source of both

illumination and conflagration.

***

Today’s poem is inspired by a spit of time I spent at a friend’s farm last night. We tended to a little work ‘round about dusk...

Thought Experiment #2

Yesterday, we engaged in a little thought experiment in which I asked this question: What needs to be true for me to push back the fear, oppression, hate, and anger of the world? Many of you responded with some variation on this theme: I need to believe God is in control. (Thanks to all of you who responded.)

This need—to believe God is in control—seems more prescient today than at any given point in my lifetime. It’s a core belief, a belief that should drive all action. But the truth is, I did...

A Simple Thought Experiment

Let’s engage in a little thought experiment. (And this is a class participation event, so prepare thyself.)

Consider the world around you—the spread of a virus, the protests in the streets, the plight of the blue-collar worker who no longer has a shift at the factory. Consider the rhetoric—the anger spewing like a tarry geyser out of Washington, the political fanaticism of any old party, the posturing. Contemplating the state of everything, ask:

What needs to be true for me to push back the fear...