Regular readers are not surprised to find my dabbles into history, philosophy, spirituality, science, medicine or politics. And hopefully, they find a thought-provoking montage of words, phrases, metaphors and quotations.
I’ll start this week’s essay with a bit of Roman history relevant to current events because more than likely by the time you read this, the die will have been cast in America.
The metaphor was made famous by Julius Caesar in 49 BC. Caesar and his army were returning to Italy after their conquest of Gaul, now known as France. The rulers in Rome were afraid of the popular and successful general, so they forbade him to cross the Rubicon River, which demarcated Italy’s northern border. Legend has it that Caesar made his decision to proceed by casting dice, uttering the phrase “alea iacta est,” the die is cast. And we have a second relevant phrase, crossing the Rubicon, which means “passing the point of no return.”
I think Paul Harvey would have approved of this historical digression as “the rest of the story.” Caesar crossed into Italy, precipitating civil war. Ultimately, he was victorious and became dictator perpetuo, dictator for life, until he was assassinated in the Roman Senate five years later on the Ides of March. (He should have heeded the warnings of the soothsayer.)
America’s Rubicon moment is underway as we vote to continue the recovery from the disastrous Biden years or go back to open borders, high crime rates, rampant fraud, impeachments, bloated government, burdensome regulations, and taxpayer support of and citizenship for illegals.
I could go on, but what’s the point? America will choose the radical Democrats and their red-green alliance of socialists/communists and Islamists or President Trump’s America First populism. I don’t know which way it will go. I hope and pray the chaos in Europe awakens people to vote for common sense rather than for the crazies. If not, we’re done, at least in my lifetime.
How did we become so divided, confused and lost that some would consider socialism and worse? As a Christian, I think part of the answer is that too many have replaced God and family with government. Ancient Biblical prophets railed against apostasy, and we are repeating those mistakes. And current day truthtellers are ridiculed by the godless intelligentsia and media.
But it’s more complicated than just a decline in modern-day spirituality. Too many feel entitled and demand a handout rather than a hand up, to repeat the common phrase. The result of this lunacy is on display in Europe right now. Jesus said those with eyes will see (Mathew 13:14), meaning those who open their eyes to reality will see. The European leaders have shut their eyes to the root causes of the “European Intifada,” which is destroying them. American fools want to bring the Intifada here.
I used to follow the BBC to consider England’s perspective. But I discovered that they are no different than the hopelessly biased NY Times. Both endeavor to shape the opinion of readers rather than honestly reporting facts as their profession proclaims. The NY Times hypocritical moniker is “All the news that’s fit to print.” The BBC even borrows the infamous CNN description of the Minneapolis riots by describing the French riots as “mostly peaceful.” Only a fool would consider their bilge.
Sometimes I wonder if I’ve lived long enough to have become a skeptic or whether life has made me a common sense realist. I read widely, listen carefully and sift everything through my own experience, observations and common sense. And I seek the Spirit’s directives which resonate within my conscience. It is this “still small voice/gentile whisper” (1 Kings 19:12) that keeps me grounded.
I have been a teacher all my adult life. I was a teacher for my own children, and also for aspiring medical students and residents, nurses and physician assistants. And now I use aspects of the trivium to engage my readers (see my October 12 column “Doomscrolling”).
One of the most challenging aspects of teaching is to foster critical thinking, which is teaching others how to think rather than what to think. Socrates taught his students through a series of questions, which enabled students to discover the answers themselves rather than lecturing. The Socratic method is more difficult, but a superior teaching method.
My high school chemistry and physics teacher taught me how to think logically rather than just learning the answers. Some years ago, I sought him out and thanked him for that gift.
Indoctrination is too often the case these days, along with a genuine lack of curiosity, if not laziness, of thought. Why struggle to find the truth when you can just “google” the answer? Recently, I read that a college professor is abandoning grades for homework because students are now using AI to complete assignments rather than learning.
To stimulate critical thinking, I often challenged young doctors to explain why they had ordered, for instance, a CAT scan. Too often they did so from rote rather than considering issues like radiation exposure, allergic reactions to contrast agents or even thinking about what they would do with the results. It is said that Socrates was challenging and sometimes difficult. Perhaps my students thought the same about me.
Last week I learned that the Dictionary.com word of the year is “maxxing.” The meaning refers to “maximizing a particular quality or activity.” An example is looks-maxxing. Most want to look their best, but this over-the-top focus seems narcissistic, after the Greek god Narcissus, who fell in love with his own reflection.
Recently, Jeffrey Tucker in the Epoch Times wrote that Americans are not socializing today as they did a generation ago. Sharing a meal with friends reinforces community, and we’re losing it. There has been “double-digit declines in practically every measure of socializing.”
In my pedagogical opinion, we need to be back in church, joining small groups for social, educational and spiritual enlightenment. We need to be having meals together with family and friends instead of a life of doomscrolling, self-indulgence and isolation.
In fact, conversation stimulates the brain far better than any other activity. Humans are social creatures, and we need to reclaim that truth or risk a dark future alone and cognitively impaired.
