Over recent weeks, we have heard so much news out of the U.S. about the many ways in which the new president is putting his country, our country and much of the world into turmoil. It’s like saturation bombing.
They call it flooding the zone, an intentional strategy to overwhelm everyone with far too much troubling information to absorb, let alone analyse and respond to.
Among his most recent initiatives are his on-again, off-again import tariffs, an ugly interaction with the Ukraine president, and a shameful proposal to expel Palestinians from their Gaza homeland.
Then there was his speech to Congress last week, so full of ridiculous falsehoods that it’s still not clear whether he intentionally lies or just can’t be bothered to find the truth of the matter. A tale of transgender mice and a fib about benefits being paid to millions of people over the age of 100 are among the many bits of bizarre mischief that would be comical if they didn’t present such dire and often tragic consequences.
He’s the guy you’d expect to say, “If you believe that, perhaps I could interest you in some swampland in Florida.”
Meanwhile, life goes on here in the Pontiac. Yes, we are susceptible to the shenanigans perpetrated by someone neither we nor most of the planet’s human population had any role in electing. But there are things we can do.
Take, for example, the resolution passed by Mansfield and Pontefract expressing the intention to buy from Pontiac suppliers whenever possible, a great example of thinking globally and acting locally that all the municipalities in the Pontiac could easily emulate.
Or, how about the Shrove Tuesday pancake supper laid on by Quyon Lions volunteers to give community members a chance to get together, share a bite and have a chat, providing nourishment not just for the body but for the soul.
Olympic-styled games for residents at the CAP. Plans being laid to build a neighbourhood of affordable tiny homes in Fort Coulonge. King Charles III Coronation Medals being awarded in recognition of outstanding community service.
As Trump floods the zone with his mischief, life goes on in the Pontiac, much as it always does, with much good will and great effort going into making things better here for more of our residents, one small step at a time, and providing lots of fun in the meantime.
