As I was reading this, invariably (because we can't help it) I had to ask where I stood, if there is such a thing, on the various tiles. It depends, so very much, on the day, the hour, the issue and so much more. What bothers me the most, perhaps, is the knee-jerk need of so many of us to wholly identify with a particular camp, as though by setting up a pup-tent on that side of the river allows us greater agency or clout. It's far more complex than that. There are issues that I feel optimistic about, and others that depress the living shit out me (like burning forests, reproductive rights, etc) which, were I to let them, would eat my soul. There are days where I feel giddily happy, and then I listen to the Supreme Court proceedings and it's like having someone pour acid into my gullet. So, it depends. I think it's awfully mindless to make overly-simplistic judgments about very complex issues as though doing so allows us to feel control over them, or of ourselves. Truth, we control nothing, and at best, we have limited control over how we frame things. I think it's possible to teach ourselves how to interact with life and its disasters in such a way that we can manage them, and to choose to put our attention onto those things over which we have direct impact and some modicum of influence. Even that, shit, JW, day to day it's a whipsaw, because this piece of news or that interaction or whatever jerks us out of our OM reverie into the real world.

I tend to agree with one of your commenters who pointed out the compulsion towards absolutism; there is a mental lie that black and white realities lend us some safety or sense of order. Nope. LIfe is chaotic as shit, there are moments of incredible joy and good news and moments of massive loss and deep pain.

I like how you laid this out. I found parts of me in various areas, not always comfortable to look at but always informative to question, and to also question whether or not that way of thinking and being serves. This is part of what I like your writing; I may not always agree right away, but what I value most are seeds for thought. I'm forever delighted when something pops up later at some point and ends up being a different way of seeing. Happily, we can't monetize that.

The more I watch us tear from the inside out as a nation, the more I have to agree that we no longer have shared values. Values appear to be malleable and negotiable, with money forever lurking right behind the curtains.

In the largest sense, there is no "making sense of" any of it. The chaos, as much as I want to believe in a benevolent Universe (the jury is out on that) is just chaos. Perhaps even more chaotic is that deeply unfortunate belief that something or someone will come along and save us all.

Thanks for an excellent, thoughtful piece. While I hate being made to squirm in my seat, I also love being made to squirm in my seat, for that means I'm being asked to think critically. And that is the whole point.