The Inevitable is inevitable

As BRICS expands over the next two decades my country will seriously contract having been surpassed by both India and China as economic powerhouses.

America – “the indispensable nation” – is in reality quite disposable. Truth be told, she will not even reach her 2076 “tricentennial” intact.

The United States, by that time, will be disunited – and in constant turmoil due to inner contradictions and warring sides acting at cross purposes. Like all empires, it will crumble and fall. Victim to unbridled greed, arrogance, and hubris.

While it is true that more and more prominent members of society are in apology mode for the sins of the past – including slavery and the genocide of Native American tribes – generally speaking, we lack a fundamental element of spirituality: shame.

We cannot feel shame because we are too proud. The two are incompatible in one being or society.

Writing a book about racism that makes the NY Times bestseller list is not a sign of repentance when the penance involves gaining fame and becoming very rich in the process as you shamelessly charge exorbitant fees to speak at colleges, conventions, and organizational assemblies.

Likewise, contributing a million dollars to Black Lives Matter does not reveal how generous and compassionate you are on racial matters. On the contrary, it exposes you as someone who is so filthy rich that you can use a small portion of your ill-gotten gains to curry favor in a barely disguised public relations gimmick. It does not absolve you of your embarrassing cupidity, however.

In our foreign affairs, we have bullied, threatened, and brutally assaulted dozens of countries killing and maiming untold numbers through our expansionist frenzy and lust for hegemonic power.

This must – and will – end.

There is a Karmic component to the revolving wheel of history as we will soon discover to our horror.

The sad truth is… all of this could have been avoided If we had a sufficient number of poets and saints to remind us of the pitfalls of vanity. But in my culture, those vocations are neither popular nor profitable.