It can’t be that bad, right?

I definitely have a morning routine. From letting the dog out, to grabbing the newspaper off the front lawn, to downing my meds with 8 oz. of Clamato, sharpening the #2 pencil in preparation for taking on the daily crossword, brewing a cup of Keurig coffee, microwaving and toasting an English muffin (to be overlaid with either peanut butter or a cheese slice, disc of sausage and fried egg), checking FB to see if any friends are having a birthday, I eventually move onto taking stock of the world, local and far-flung, by perusing the contents of the Register-Guard, the Oregonian, the NYT, CNN, and the WSJ.

Given this steady infusion of news and information, I’ve developed a threshold for assessing the general state of things. The normal zeitgeist is always just south or north of grim, with differing amounts of loathsome mixed in, but, over the last few weeks I’ve had the increasing sense that the future is depressingly bleak. It’s a sense of doom that haunts the otherwise pleasant aspects of my existence where the Ducks are winning, the pizza oven is producing a quality product, and there are frequent opportunities to travel for pleasure. Just to lighten the psychic load, here’s a partial list of the things that have me deeply concerned:

• A World at War: the war in Ukraine is now several years old with no end in sight. The death toll continues to mount and there seems to be no end to amount of military aid that will be required to repel Russia’s invasion. Now war in Middle East has erupted with similar consequences and obligations to support Israel in its fight to crush Hamas. The toll in human lives and deficit spending is mounting higher and higher. How many people will die? How much will the US spend arming its allies? Where does it end? World War III?
• A Government in Crisis: have the “left” and “right” ever been more polarized? We live in a time where an indicted, corrupt politician continues to hold a large following in thrall with a real prospect of regaining the White House. Compromise seems like a distant mirage, and the national meltdown of civility is a direct result of the political hostilities.
• Antarctic Melting: a new study states that it is now impossible to prevent the ice shelves in the Antarctic from melting and raising sea levels. Untold suffering and property loss will be a constant refrain in the decades to come.
• Economic Insecurity: when the WSJ says that economists no longer understand the economy and that time-held strategies of investing may no longer secure the financial futures of US citizens, it’s time to worry. There is no place to run or hide from predicted volatility in the markets. At the least, it’s exhausting to live with the possibility of an economic wipeout lurking around every corner.

Is that enough? Even though life on the ground continues a pace, Americans have a lot to worry about. I know that I am deeply concerned. Mike Johnson, the new Speaker of the House, says that adversity makes us stronger. If that’s true, we should all be superheroes at this point.