as summer slipped into its last month...we had our country's second convention...now, we know each side has lambasted the other's candidates...speakers...delegates...slogans...intent...ad nauseum...but one thing is certain for both sides...there is fatigue behind all those smiles...not the kind that comes from too much after hours partying in Milwaukee or Chicago...no, it is a weariness from years of distrust...distaste...dishonesty...most Americans politically align one way or the other...but these days...the political construct leaves a bitter taste in one's mouth...allowing for left and right extremism...in this respect, the United States is not alone...we can see it in election cycles worldwide...and with this eerie shift...if we are now in this century's "roaring twenties"...are we headed to the authoritarian thirties, part 2?...as for the conventions...when watching them...and I did...well, one more than the other...I often found myself most immersed in the everyday citizens who were asked to speak...their stories were genuine...sincere...a rare political commodity...but this election cycle I find my enthusiasm has been curbed...sidelined by this nation's growing pains...hopefully a "midlife crisis" not a death knell...so, I wait for these last August sunsets...and strangely think of Jimmy Carter...his upcoming 100th birthday this October...and his determination to vote this November...to plant that seed like the good farmer he was...and me...I'm hoping for some inspiration...hope
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