What Now?

Do you remember Doc Brown’s Delorean?  Ted and Bill’s magic phone booth?  Let’s play a game of imagination as we end this book.  Marty McFly explodes onto the scene outside your house and invites you to hop in.  In a flash, he hits 88 mph and, bam, the next thing you know everything around you changes.  When you ask him where you are, he merely points to the time scope on the dashboard and you see its 1858?  Or maybe it says 1773?  What would you do?

Those words are from the eighteenth installment (find earlier sections here) about my recent book, one that I am very excited about—Tracking the Storm.  An excerpt from Chapter 5 follows below.  You can download a pdf  if you enjoy reading on your computer or also purchase a printed copy of the book.

Let’s make it easy—you are in Virginia in 1858.  Do you march to Washington to seek an audience with President Buchanan? If you were forced to live there, would you end up owning slaves in order to economically feed yourself? Would you try to free slaves?  Would you assist John Brown or would you try to warn the political leaders of Virginia it was coming?  Or, if its 1772, do you try to reach Governor Thomas Hutchinson in Boston to warn him of the impending debacle with the tea ships? Or, since you are in Virginia, do you try to find George Washington to give him advice about the coming war?

Do you see what I am getting at?  You ARE ALIVE in that same type of period, similar critical moment in history.  Maybe it’s not the equivalent of 1858 but more like 1852, before the railroad decision.  Maybe its 1764, before the Stamp Act, but make no mistake, the evidence is that we are in that equivalent year.  Here’s another quick rundown of how we got here by showing you a short version of the years between crisis, that each crisis led to a new round of the four cycle period.

1689—English Bill of Rights creates the first Constitutional Monarchy; but early 1700s “Salutary Neglect” combined with America forced to defend itself in early “Colonial Wars” (circa 1720-30) LEADS TO the 1754 Albany Congress; Ben Franklin suggested commonwealth combines with new American “definitions” of words like representation, economics, taxes, trade, liberty, voting

SO—The American Revolution was fought about control—Rebels win, and a Republic is born

1781—the Founders create a Republic but are divided over what that really means; but 1800, Jefferson-styled focus on “the people” LEADS TO 1832, Jacksonian “Democracy,” and his own, new “definitions” about government, the Presidency itself, creating a more powerful American Presidency

SO—The Civil War was fought about states and citizens losing local control to the federal government—Rebels lose, the Union is saved, the slaves are freed, but the government is altered, exerting more power and control.

1865—Lincoln brings in more centralized government, moving away from local focus (thus, “States’ Rights” no more); but 1880 Populists focus on need for more Democracy PLUS more Government LEADS TO 1912 Wilsonian Progressive Government with even more Federal Government oversight, more control, though with more supposed help for the little guy

 SO—The Depression/WW2 fought to maintain stronger Government control against enemy of rich capitalists and dictators, both demonized to the point where citizens accept new change—Government wins, though altered in terms relative to power, economic impact and control.

1945—FDR wins unprecedented 4^th term, idolized by most citizens; but 1960s JKF/LBJ focus on even more government control creating economic malaise LEADS TO 1980s Reagan Revolution, supposedly a return to conservative governing principles of the Founders; true to some effect, but “Big government” remains entrenched even with Republicans in office seen in new cabinet positions, war on drugs, expanded military spending, continued (increased??) earmark/pork barrel spending into 21^st century

SO—new Great Crisis period . . . .