Oddbean

Last night, we went into the city for a dinner with my wife’s colleagues. At the tables were seated Chinese, Iranian, Pakistani, Indian, European, Nigerian, and Canadian people. We ate at an Afghani restaurant. We had one thing that tied us all together. We are human. We are messy. We have a past, some form of struggle, like every other human, that brought us to this place. That brought us together for one reason. To give our children a better life than the one we were given, and to leave the world a better place. The individuals who sit atop our institutions, who say they are fighting for my way of life, to protect my way of life, and are attempting to give my children a future better than the one we have now, are liars. They lie. They divide. They justify their existence based on differences that are inherit of all humans. They do it to line their pockets with the profits of war. To gain power for themselves. To acquire wealth so that they can shield themselves from a life that is real, and messy. They hide their intentions behind masks of altruism. They hide behind placid masks for their flaccid souls. The people who fight for my way of life, for the quality of life of my children, were the ones sitting in that room with me.

Ps - there was also a Lebanese couple who I really enjoy speaking with too. We can read articles, watch interviews, stream documentaries, but there is nothing better than sitting down with someone and listening to their story.