Raining

Looking over some recent posts, it seems I am exhibiting a predilection for one word titles that end in -ing. I thought therefore it was worth continuing for at least one more time.

As I write this post, it is raining, and that is quite a relief from days of burning sunshine and high humidity. Temperatures are in the low 70s (Fahrenheit) for the first time in a long while. However, the view outside is quite soggy and dark. There is a metaphor in there, somewhere. It reminds me of an early song of Amy Grant’s called “Raining on the Inside.” I never liked that song and I’m not a huge fan of Amy Grant, but there is some truth to it. There’s a lot of “raining on the inside” going on around here.

I work in higher education. And it’s in big trouble. There is a lot of anxiety about the Fall and I’ve mentioned before that I feel rather critical about plans that include students returning en masse to campus for what will, at best, be a distorted and disjointed educational experience. I’m especially critical that many administrators do not seem willing to openly acknowledge this, even as I understand the reasons why.

Then came my government’s bizarre directive a few days ago that international students enrolled at U.S. colleges and universities that plan an online-only Fall semester must return to their home countries. This is nothing more or less than governmental blackmail, and it is despicable. I am so angry at this regime, and that anger is mixed with a large amount of despair. (Use of the word “regime” here is deliberate.)

I hold no illusions that the other political party, the opposition party in my country, is significantly better than the one currently in power. But we the people must do everything in our power to vote out and destroy any vestiges of power accumulated by the current administration. We have to restore and repair the incalculable damage that has been, and continues to be done.

Again, though, the real heart of the problem lies with the millions of people who put the current regime in place and continue to support its outrageous lies, bizarre narcissism, and complete moral bankruptcy cloaked in a thin veneer of rectitude. You are being used, people (especially many evangelicals). Wake up and smell the coffee.

In the meantime, it’s still raining.