Can’t We Just Get Along?

A valid question once asked by Rodney King. A valid question today. A naïve one too, perhaps. But damn, why can’t we?!

Greed. Lust for power. A wish to exhibit strength. A desire to change economics, religion. A need to crush a perceived adversary. The list, alas, goes on.

Living in Canada and the U.S., we’re not subjected to armed helicopters and aircraft and destructive missiles flying overhead. We don’t hear the constant rat-a-tat of soldiers’ gunfire in nearby neighborhoods. We see it on TV, and it’s horrifying, and unimaginable. And it hits even closer to home when there’s a friend or family member caught in that conflict.

While I may comprehend the basics behind wars and conflicts and the like, I don’t profess to be scholarly or worldly, or know the multifaceted details behind them. What I do understand is the destruction, the senseless loss of lives … the horror, anguish … and the amazing resilience and strength of conviction held by those being persecuted. I find that astounding. God bless them.

I said I’d never post about politics, religion, and the like. And I won’t. I’m not. I’m simply feeling a need to comment on the sad state of the world right now. While we may be more technically savvy, more “advanced”, more knowledgeable (to a degree, anyway), things really haven’t changed over the centuries. History, sadly and truly, does repeat itself.

My view of life and the world leans toward simplistic and naïve … as do my dreams and hopes. And so, I humbly ask …

…why, oh why, can’t we just all get along?