“I Understand the Concept of Politics, Now”

Maybe I’m being cynical; maybe I’m being paranoid. Last Wednesday’s debacle in Washington, D.C. has made me take a serious look at the state of mind of a country at war with itself. I warned of this several times over the last five years, but who am I kidding? No one in the States listens to a Canadian, when he expresses his opinions.

If I’m honest, I have a point of view that is a little left of centre. That doesn’t mean I’m not able to see both sides of any question: what it means is that my instincts as an Aquarian will kick in when I detect bullsh*t. Another family member, whose birth date follows mine by one day (though one generation later), stated that ‘something’s rotten in the state of Denmark’. I know exactly what he means. My wife said, “I smell a rat!”

This book was penned at the end of the 19th century, and ostensibly involves events mere years later. A work of political satire, it chastises the rise of socialism and populism, inferring their fictional rise here as disastrous and leading to chaos.  

It is of note here that this work, along with others by Lockwood, appears to prognosticate the current political climate of the United States and West at large – and for an apparent religious Catholic of his era, it is not altogether impossible that Lockwood – wittingly or unwittingly – tapped into some mystic forces. Regardless, it is an interesting little political story from its time and is reflective of some of the social ideologies and movements of the age.

Amazon

It’s the subtitle that caught my eye, and a thought that won’t leave my head:

What if the “powers-that-be” want to end this ‘experiment’ of democracy?

It’s happened before. The Roman Republic lasted until Julius Caesar became Dictator.

After Caesar was assassinated, all hell broke loose: a civil war ensued, and the ultimate winner, Octavian, became the first Roman Emperor, Augustus Caesar.

But that’s not a fairy tale ending. Will the United States of America go the same way?