Mutual Forbearance and Temporizing

I would fain hope that liberal allowances will be
made for the political opinions of one another;
and instead of the wounding
suspicion and irritating charges,
there might be mutual forbearance
and temporizing yielding on all side,
without which I do not see how the
reins of government are to be managed.

~George Washington
First United States President

Of Note: We might think that the political situation in the United States at the moment is something new. Not so. After the Revolutionary War, the framers of our constitution struggled to shape a country different than any other based on concepts not yet formulated. There were growing pains aplenty but these men were guided by principles of freedom and equality even if it took a civil war and a civil rights movement to bring these concepts to fruition. That's how it is with a government. The process is painful, just like any birth. After the birth of our nation came the childhood and adolescent years all fraught with their own brand of discomfort. Now is the time for this nation to enter adulthood. However, with few guides as to how to do it well, we are struggling once again. No wonder. One of the roles of the United States of America is testing new concepts in a melting pot run by a huge federal bureaucracy, 50 state governments and innumerable governmental and non-governmental bodies with inherent freedom and equality as its base. No other nation comes close to this complexity. When we emerge as an adult nation is anyone's guess at this time but the world will know it is happening when the demonizing, vilification and hateful speech cease and a group of true leaders steps forward who understands the nature of maturity. President Washington will then smile upon his work. The day is coming.

Today's Weather Report: Remember how I predicted a more sunny December? Well, it hasn't happened yet. Currently, it is 27 degrees Fahrenheit and cloudy. Very cloudy. For many people in northern climates, so many cloudy days in a row have a tendency to bring on seasonal affective disorder, a kind of depression, at one end of the spectrum with cabin fever at the other. Most of us eventually succumb to the latter but usually around February or March. The holiday season keeps many buoyed up at this point because a white Christmas is hard to beat, but then they take off to Texas or Florida for a break. Why is sunshine so important for mental and physical health? After all, the Masters recommend 15 minutes of sunshine a day for optimum performance. The answer lays in the healing qualities of the invisible rays of vitality that stream from sources beyond the sun but are channeled through that great body. When we cut ourselves off from the Source, poor health can eventuate. My recommendations? Sit quietly either outside or by a window for 15 minutes a day. Cleanse the mind of worry. Shut down the thinking apparatus. Just be bathed in the loving, healing rays of the sun then resume the daily activities whatever they might be. Carry the calm as far into the day as possible. If done regularly, the loving peace will eventually continue until the next dose. All it takes is practice, practice, practice. Shalom.

Special Watcher's Report: Qatar was awarded the 2022 World Cup this week much to the surprise of the runner-up delegation from the United States, which included former President Bill Clinton. No World Cup series has ever been held in the Middle East, and the crowds in Qatar went wild in the streets. Many allegations of bid rigging and corruption made the rounds but in the end it made no difference. The tiny nation propelled by natural gas fortunes promises to spend billions on infrastructure, $50 billion all told. It has not been made public yet how the Muslim nation will handle the issue of alcohol, which goes hand and hand with soccer in non-Muslim nations, and the Israeli team, which must be allowed to play without fear for their safety. But this and many other answers will surely unfold over the next 12 years which in these days of accelerated change is like a lifetime.