Once again, it seems we’re at the darkest of days.

I mean that literally and figuratively. Today is the Winter Solstice, the shortest day and longest night of the year. This, of course, happens every year. But the night may be longer and darker this time around due to the state of our politics and greater societal conversation.

Tepidly, I tiptoe into the fray, but I simply cannot get into politics on this blog. I’ve tried writing this entry four times now and I always come off as a preachy dejected Bernie Bro...

Which, of course, I am.

However, I will say that there have been three things happen this year that should be of concern for anyone. The first is the Brexit vote, where the United Kingdom decided to leave the European Union. I honestly don’t know how much of a big deal this is since I don’t live there, but it seems like the UK was vital to the EU’s success, and it’s secession will leave both in turmoil. The second is the election of He Who Must Not Be Named, a certain orange demagogue that has frankly been written about enough. And the third is the literal rise of a fascist leader in France. It’s kind of hard to imagine anyone in Europe thinking Fascism will solve any of their problems, but here we are.

Obviously, I am very troubled over these events. In a world where we have seemingly limitless potential to unite as one species and go into the future with compassion and grace, we are instead bound and determined to tear everything apart. The same technological wizardry that brings us together online also provides safe haven for those who would divide us. The instant access to information has created the negative effect of an overabundance, a deluge of misinformation which is created faster than can be refuted; the so called "post-truth" landscape.

I wrote about this juxtaposition at the end of last year as well, but now it seems an even more salient point. Our progress towards utopia and a descent into utter madness is on the same bell curve. Hell, it’s on the same chart. I think Sam Harris wrote the best summary of the phenomena:

“The truth about us is sobering: We have been playing with our smartphones while hurtling toward the abyss…”

But, I don’t want to get into politics.

Not here. FLOLAS is about nature, humanity’s place in it, and it's cycles. Perhaps this should be my only commentary on the matter: this seems to be cyclic. We go left for eight years, then we go right. Then we go left, and now we’re going back right. Cycles. Like the solstices and equinoxes. Ebb and Flow.

Still, this election was different.

I’ve never seen the level of vitriol, distrust, and utter hatred for one another that I saw this time. I’ve never seen a candidate not only condone but egg on such behavior. And I’ve never seen the press so confused by it all, like a dog with too many tennis balls, unable to focus on one travesty long enough to analyze before another juicier headline came along. It was an orgy of ignorance and the first time I’ve ever truly felt despair as to the fate of the Republic.

President Obama remains hopeful during all of this. I, for one, agree with Dave Chappelle, he did a good job. I think Obama was exactly what we needed for the last eight years, and his legacy speaks for itself. He has been a bright light during a dark time. In fact, the biggest paradox of this cycle has been his high outgoing approval rating, even as one of his biggest detestors is elected to take his place. Perhaps his audacity for hope and progress has lead to an equally audacious backlash.

I am reminded of this:

“Rationalism and superstition are complementary. It is a psychological rule that the brighter the light, the blacker the shadow; in other words, the more rationalistic we are in our conscious minds, the more alive becomes the spectral world of the unconscious.” - Carl Jung

And this is to say nothing of all the death. From the constant celebrity passings to the genocide in Aleppo and all the other horrible things happening across the world. Somewhat ironically, given my musical taste and the piece of artwork for this particular blog, since I've been writing this there's been yet another.

Perhaps it is darkest before the dawn. Perhaps this is just a swing in a particular political direction, a temper tantrum of an aging and dying majority, a refutation of our technological globalist UBI future. Or perhaps it's all for the best and I'm just a naive young idealist.

Who knows?

What I do know is that once this bright light is faded, the shadow that remains will be black as night and the spectrals will come out to play.