The Wreck – a poem

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I sit gazing over the warm waters of Islamorada –
The seabirds, the distant lighthouse, the wind-surfers,
Kayakers, and jet-skiers skudding to and fro.
Islamorada about relaxation, slowness,
Extended time, warmth, sun and beauty.
Rather than their busy-ness what intrigues me
Is what seems to be a wreck,
Marooned on the outer edges of the reef.
From the beach it reminds me of the carcass of a
Giant Wildebeest on the Africa savannah,
Its gaunt ribs, bleached by the sun, pointing to the sky.

My imagination takes control. No, it must be old,
A large, wooden fishing boat, forlorn and abandoned.
What accounted for its demise, the summons of death?
Did a storm or a hurricane drive the boat ashore?
Is there some treacherous current out there?
Did the skipper, reveling in a good day’s fishing,
Take a lazy short-cut across a sandbar toward the jetty?
Were the crew celebrating the catch with one too many beers,
With the engine at full blast, the steersman inattentive,
Drink in hand, came the sudden halt, the lurch,
As boat grounds on the reef in a falling tide.
At that speed it stresses the keel and chines.
Chaos! Maybe broken planking in the hull?
Maybe water pouring in?
Broken glasses and whisky pouring from the bottle.
A sudden sobering up, a ship abandoned.

Or was it more sober, a simple mistake?
Perhaps a freshening gale and the need for a secure mooring
Led to a moment of distraction and impatience?
The water is shallow, no lives were at stake.
At worst the crew could reach land and struggle in
Through choppy waters, touching the weedy bottom.
Best get the boat straight to safety. A risk taken.
All at once the boat was so firmly lodged that
Nothing could refloat her.

That was a year ago and every day the sea claims
Another piece of stringer here or a grab-rail there,
As the fishing boat gradually disintegrates.

————————————————————

“The remains of that boat out there, offshore”, I ask.
“What is its story? Was there an accident or perhaps a storm?”
” A boat? There is no boat”, comes the reply. ” Oh, that!
“Look again. That is no fishing boat; it is a
Tree,
Dislodged up-coast in a winter storm.
It floated down from Key to Key and settled upon
The sandbar, where now you see it”.

So much for my daydreaming! And my eyesight.
But I still prefer the more exciting version.
(Robert Hanrott, 1995)

Every qualified citizen should be allowed to vote

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An astronaut, miles above the Earth in a spacecraft voted in the American election with an encrypted ballot. I thought that was wonderful. On the other hand ruthless gerrymandering has discouraged thousands of US citizens from getting to the polls in person. The President has spent huge amounts of time trying to discredit mail-in voting.

Polling stations have been closed, constituency boundaries have been re-drawn to ensure a certain outcome, and in one case at least there is only one dropbox in a whole (large) county. If you don’t have a car, cannot drive owing to age or ill health, or there is no public transport, you can be deprived of your vote unless ballots are mailed to you. Nonetheless, many poor people and minorities have voted in huge numbers. The response from the populists has been that the voting is fraudulent – a fraudulent lie in itself.

Epicurus would not be surprised at the gerrymandering etc, (he disliked politicians) but would rejoice in the fortitude and determination of people who, somehow or other, have still managed to vote and exercise their rights as citizens, and in huge numbers. Well done! And thank you to the poll workers, too! Democracy at work! (But we haven’t seen the last of those who would rob us of peace of mind or our rights as citizens, whichever party you voted for).

………..Three hours later: Relief!! Maybe now some peace and quiet.

Polititicization of science

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The politicization of science in the name of religion and political partisanship is not new to the United States, but transformation of traditional geographically and economically based political parties into religiously oriented ideological coalitions marks the beginning of a new era for science policy.” (Jon Miller and colleagues, Michigan State University in “Science” magazine)

My comment: It marks the beginning of a new era for Epicureans as well, however they interpret Epicurus! It is all very well advocating keeping your head down and not getting involved, but there will at this rate come a point when rational people, such as Epicureans, will be persecuted and discriminated against for their independence of mind.  It is already happening in isolated spots for scientists and is alive and well in small communities with mega-churches, where conformity to church teaching is obligatory if you want a social life.

Guns and the election

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In this pandemic year, gun sales have already totaled more than 17 million (including many first-time gun buyers). A record 15.1 million weapons were sold between March and September alone. Even for the country whose citizens were already (by far) the most heavily armed on the planet, this is record-breaking territory. We are an armed nation. No surprise then that, in these stressful election and Covid-19 months, gun deaths rose significantly in red states as well as blue states, red cities along with blue ones.

My comment: What is being openly discussed in Europe is right. After a century of dominance the moral and democratic hegemony of the United Sates in the Western world is truly over, gone, caput.

For me, anyway, the above statistic is obscene. And this comes from someone who, for decades, has been a fervent admirer of the country and its values, who married an American and came here to live. Let us hope there are still some grownups around to calm the country.

Modern silliness

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The U.K. National Trust is the British organisation that looks after historic houses and gardens. (Up to now it has done a great job, a tourist’s must-see. (Ed.)

But the Trust’s “Ten-year Vision” seeks to reposition it in a manner that provides a telling example of the relentless politicisation of areas of life that should escape politics. Its raison d’être, you’d think, was to preserve historically significant houses and gardens for public enjoyment. Wrong. The Trust’s “Ten-year Vision” talks instead of the need for a “revolutionary” move away from the “outdated mansion experience” (sic) Underpinning “our 21st century ambition”, it says, “is our renewed commitment to… playing our part to create a fair, equal society” (Excuse me! What? Ed.)

And it’s not just the Trust. Football and rugby players have to kneel before every game “in obeisance to a protest movement sparked in another continent”. A male-voice choir of police employees in Wales has been told it can no longer associate itself with the police because it does not accept women members. (Male voice choirs are an old Welsh tradition. Ed) Such intrusions into the domain of independent societies threaten the very basis of pluralist society. “If we bow to the demand that all human activity must be understood and mediated through a political lens, we will live to regret it.”
(Niall Gooch, UnHerd, The Week, 24 October 2020)

My comment: How, pray, can an organisation set up to preserve stately homes possibly create a “fair, equal society” unless it fills them with poor moslem migrants? This is beyond crass and devalues the work of the many people genuinely trying to create a more fair society. I am no longer a member of the National Trust, but if I were I would resign. It has been taken over by morons.