The World Continues to Happen

We come from a generation that started with nothing, and worked hard to take care of our families and communities. We started without internet, email and portable technology. Human interaction was in person. We treasured the values of hard work, integrity and equality. And we were most certainly beneficiaries of living in a functional, democratic society in which, with all its imperfections, we were afforded opportunity, safety and a sense of belonging.

This blog is mostly about sailing and, while we feel blessed to be able to enjoy this phase of life, it doesn’t take away from our dismay at the darker side of our contemporary world.

The intentional degradation of our society is a tool that feeds the egos and bank accounts of a few, that allows extremism to take the place of moderation, that confuses propaganda with truth, and that replaces decades of democracy, diplomacy, justice, and cooperation with autocracy, violence, bullying and selfishness. Culture, science, free speech and independent education are no longer garanteed. The comparisons to George Orwell’s “1984” are palpable.

I’ve never been shy about my political leanings. Having the good fortune of growing up in two strong democracies, the USA and Switzerland, it’s heart-breaking to see it being eroded so quickly. Yes, it is a tired system with many defects such as burgeoning budget deficits, corruption, exaggerated focus on the most marginal members of society, the erosion of the middle class, and uncontrolled immigration. It’s allowed terrorism, retaliatory violence, mass murders and illegal wars to persist around the world. The system was fragile, and needed hard changes. But rather than working together to address them, those defects have been tactically leveraged to create an atmosphere of anger, hatred, fear and divisiveness that overshadowed the benefits of democracy, and allows for the purchase of power, and the manipulation of elections.

It’s easy to be a critic and Sandy and I have tried to fight back with our limited means… lobbying, protesting, organizing, contributing to moderate candidates. We even experimented with creating a non-partisan grassroots activist group. At the end of the day, one aspect of democracy we have to accept is that we may not always be in the majority. And that’s OK if the majority is legitimate. If, however, the majority is constituted from manipulating an outmoded and tired electoral system, from slandering the opposition, and by issuing laws and directives that influence election outcomes and exclude certain voters, that becomes less acceptable.

One of the reasons I like Maine so much, is that it’s resisted many disturbing trends around the world. It could be a divided state with a mostly conservative inland population and a mostly liberal coastal population. However, there’s an independent spirit and a general desire to remain a community that is a stronger impetus than infighting between parties or ideologies. Constructive debate happens. Politicians are willing to break with party lines and focus on public service. People are outspoken about possibly opposing views, but without relying on fear or hatred to advance their agenda. And there’s a respect for history, tradition and culture.

I respect my friends who don’t share these views, and even find it enlightening to listen to them. They are educated and informed and often raise points that stretch us beyond the echo chambers of our favorite, but biased source of news. But I think they underestimate the heavy price we will pay in terms of the politicization of the judicial system, and the elimination of checks and balances, for results that I personally doubt are positive. Sure, fear of incarceration in terrible prisons in unsavory countries has been effective at stemming illegal immigration. But is that really the only way? And is it consistent with American values and laws?

Fortunately, the bond of real friendship is usually stronger than the divisiveness of opposing political views.

Sorry about wandering off topic. Back to sailing. After a lazy morning in Seal Bay, kayaking, watching seals and enjoying the peacefulness, we sailed across to Stonington. This little town is predominately home to a lobster fishing community. But it has surprises, such as an active opera house (theater), a unique little book shop overlooking the harbor and some interesting restaurants, with very few tourists. We attended a play called “Rooted”, a comical metaphor about environmental conservation.

Stonington is in stark contrast to our next stop, Bar Harbor, which is overrun with tourists during the summer months. But that doesn’t take away from it remaining a very pleasant town and the gateway to Acadia National Park.

We finished the day with some live music, courtesy of Didier, and a delicious dinner of swordfish grilled on board. We’re looking forward to hiking in Acadia tomorrow