Crossing Nebraska

Let me begin by saying that this post is likely not about what you might think it will be about given the title. I’m not going to discuss the world’s predilection for geriatric and patriarchal leadership—although that is a subject worthy of exploration. I’m also not going to discuss how some older people feel as though they’ve become invisible in our youth and beauty-oriented culture—although that’s also a worthwhile topic of exploration. Strangely, both realities are true. We have many aging and aged people in power, and they’re keeping the world stuck in ways of being that no longer serve us. We also tend to eschew the true wisdom of the elders in favor of what is young and energetic, and exciting. However, what I really want to talk about in this post is how aging can give us power to serve this world in meaningful and productive ways rather than self-serving and destructive ones. The author and his spouse at a vigil for Alex Pretti. Photo by Hayley Jarman For the most part, I came ...

  The ICE murder of Renee Good in Minneapolis this week has served up a big batch of the toxic stew that this current administration is known for. No, the investigation is not wrapped up and, given our country’s history of letting agents of the state kill our fellow citizens simply by claiming they “feared for their lives,” I’m not confident that justice will ever be served. And yet, video clearly shows the ICE agent stealthily maneuvering into position in front of Good’s car—the position he will no doubt claim is such a dangerous and fearsome place to be—and then fire three rounds directly at her head and upper body. A recording exists of an ICE agent referring to Good as a “fucking bitch” while she’s bleeding and dying. A witness who claimed to be a medical doctor also reports that he was kept from giving aid to Good during what turned out to be her final moments alive. Reportedly she died at a hospital after critical first aid was delayed. This absolute disregard for human lif...