There's a lot of hysterical nonsense in today's Globe and Mail, most of which concerns the US election, "the most consequential since 1864," according to contributor and New Yorker stalwart Adam Gopnik.
What's so consequential about it?
Whether Trump or Biden prevails on Nov. 3, the American people can be assured of remaining the only modern society without public heath-care. They can be assured of the continued emaciation of the middle and working classes. Income inequality will continue to rage out of control. Military spending will continue to rise, employment precarity will increase, and the homeless crisis will get worse.
In short, the world will continue to be a bed of roses for the billionaires and their minions, while the rest of us double down on the fight for the hind teat.
So why do Gopnik and the other never-Trumpers featured in the Globe's opinion section find this election so important? Because it's the last best chance to turn back the clock to the pre-Trump golden age of the American Empire, when the USA unambiguously led the Nations of Virtue in the battle for freedom and human rights against the forces of darkness; China, Iran, Russia, and the handful of failed states who bob in their wake.
In other words, they're pining for the good old days; Hiroshima, Korea, Viet Nam, Laos, Cambodia, Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria... the glory days when American might determined what was right.
Yessiree, it would be tough to top the foolishness in the opinion pages, but Mathew Hague pulls it off on page p3. The sub-head of his story, on coping with kids in your condo apartment in the time of covid, caught my eye; "climbing walls in bedrooms, foldaway desks with chalkboard, and trampolines on balconies... how some are making the most of their condos for their kids."
I'm not always a big fan of "expert opinion," but I'm willing to bet that 100% of pediatricians would not recommend putting a trampoline on your high-rise balcony for your children.
In this case, I'm with the experts.
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