Margaret Atwood

And my answer to that was go back to the founders, namely the 17th century Puritan theocrats who never went away. They took different forms, but they didn't vanish. So looking at what's happening in the 80s with the political organization of the religious right, that is who you see in League trying to get rid of the voting rights and all the rest of it. Those are the folks.

And my answer to that was go back to the founders, namely the 17th century Puritan theocrats who never went away. They took different forms, but they didn't vanish. So looking at what's happening in the 80s with the political organization of the religious right, that is who you see in League trying to get rid of the voting rights and all the rest of it. Those are the folks.

It's not everybody's interpretation of Christianity, by the way.

It's not everybody's interpretation of Christianity, by the way.

Absolutely. And not only that, if you make it into a religion, which of course so many regimes throughout history have done, the divine right of kings, the Holy Roman Empire, if you connect it with a religion, then it becomes heresy to oppose it. It becomes a very powerful tool. You're not just against some prime minister or other, you're against God.

Absolutely. And not only that, if you make it into a religion, which of course so many regimes throughout history have done, the divine right of kings, the Holy Roman Empire, if you connect it with a religion, then it becomes heresy to oppose it. It becomes a very powerful tool. You're not just against some prime minister or other, you're against God.

And that's a pretty serious thing in a believing community. And a lot of rulers have told a story about how they are there by divine fiat. In fact, you find it on the English money to this day.

And that's a pretty serious thing in a believing community. And a lot of rulers have told a story about how they are there by divine fiat. In fact, you find it on the English money to this day.

Yeah, especially now. I think that's how we are to a certain extent as an entity on this planet, that if you tried to pay attention to everything that's going on, especially now with this deluge of information that is available, your head would explode. And a lot of people have immediate lives that they have to tend to. So if you have a young family, you know what that's like.

Yeah, especially now. I think that's how we are to a certain extent as an entity on this planet, that if you tried to pay attention to everything that's going on, especially now with this deluge of information that is available, your head would explode. And a lot of people have immediate lives that they have to tend to. So if you have a young family, you know what that's like.

It's an immersive experience, and you can't just say, oh, let's do that next week. It's now, and you are in the moment, whether you do all this meditation stuff, be in the moment. If you have young children, you cannot help but be in the moment. You are in that moment, and somebody is shitting on the floor right now, and you have to do something about it now. So people have their own lives.

It's an immersive experience, and you can't just say, oh, let's do that next week. It's now, and you are in the moment, whether you do all this meditation stuff, be in the moment. If you have young children, you cannot help but be in the moment. You are in that moment, and somebody is shitting on the floor right now, and you have to do something about it now. So people have their own lives.

They have their immediate concerns. They have their own jobs and financial problems. They have stuff they have to deal with. And to try to take any sort of a wide or long view is quite hard for a lot of people because their own lives are so immediate, immersive, and stressed. So that's part of the problem.

They have their immediate concerns. They have their own jobs and financial problems. They have stuff they have to deal with. And to try to take any sort of a wide or long view is quite hard for a lot of people because their own lives are so immediate, immersive, and stressed. So that's part of the problem.

And the other part of the problem is we would rather not look, especially if we feel powerless in the face of that which we are being asked to look at. Like, what do you expect me to do? So our really big problem and what is driving a lot of these other problems is what used to be called climate change and is now called the climate crisis.

And the other part of the problem is we would rather not look, especially if we feel powerless in the face of that which we are being asked to look at. Like, what do you expect me to do? So our really big problem and what is driving a lot of these other problems is what used to be called climate change and is now called the climate crisis.

And that is going to be more weather catastrophes, more fires, more droughts, more famines. And when you have famines, And water shortages, you're going to have social unrest, and you're going to have a great big refugee problem, which we already have now. So what are you going to do? And for most people, what can they do? And therefore, I would rather not look.

And that is going to be more weather catastrophes, more fires, more droughts, more famines. And when you have famines, And water shortages, you're going to have social unrest, and you're going to have a great big refugee problem, which we already have now. So what are you going to do? And for most people, what can they do? And therefore, I would rather not look.

So it's like my friend who, when she sees a squirrel run over in the streets, she says, I don't want to look at that. Well, you know, who does? I don't want to look at a squashed squirrel either, but it's there.

So it's like my friend who, when she sees a squirrel run over in the streets, she says, I don't want to look at that. Well, you know, who does? I don't want to look at a squashed squirrel either, but it's there.