the headlines on this monday's new york times read (and i imagine in a somewhat purposeful order of imporantance):
"fuel subsidies take a toll on US"
"worried banks sharply reduce business loans"
"suicide bombers kill 28 in baghdad..."
my has not the face of our country changed drastically in the past few months. ever since last august, perhaps timed well not only with the budding implosion of the housing bubble, but also with the presidential race, the united states has gone from smug global leader, to a country of disillusioned, trade-frightened, protectionist minded, just plainly unhappy people.
did we ever think we would get here?
this weekend i went to visit new york city, my second home, and probably the number one place in my heart. new york holds a very special spot for me because it's the place where i found myself challenged, and was able to really see myself grow. i went back to new york, in the coat tails of one of the 3 most stressful weeks i've been through, expecting everything to be like how it was, and was a bit disappointed. "expectations are a bitch." -- amanda would say; yes they are.
it's not that new york this time around (for my ridiculously short visit) was a disappointment. the city and the friends almost never are, it's just that it will also never show you the same card twice.
and i think that's the problem i have... that we all have. we have these expectations for familiarity. but how can this even seem rational when to quote someone famous "the only sure thing in life is that life will change."
i think we always imagine that change will be bad, when in reality, change is almost never bad. it becomes bad because we don't know how to deal with it. it becomes back because we force what can't be, and in some cases, what most assuredly will not be.
i think the US and her leaders will come around... we always do, but how painful, and how slow it might take depends on how quickly our leaders will take the initiative to move with the change, and how able they are to show us normal people how to do the same. mr. obama are you ready?
