Quieting the Canaries – A Message from My American Friend
The other day, my American friend shared something powerful on their social media page. It was written by a Zen priest who’s been meditating for over 50 years, reflecting on what’s happening in the U.S. right now. The language was intense—almost poetic—but also very dense and American. So I decided to break it down in a way that makes sense to Canadians like me.
Here’s what I took away from it:
We’re Living in Overwhelming Times
The author starts by saying that today’s world feels like staring straight into the sun. It’s disorienting and destabilizing. For someone who has trained their mind through decades of meditation, even they are struggling to make sense of what’s happening.
A Powerful Group is Controlling the Narrative
There’s a group of extremely wealthy people—billionaires and executives—who are using their money and influence to:
- Fund extreme religious and anti-democratic political movements (like Christian nationalism)
- Avoid taking responsibility for the harmful impacts of technology (like addictive social media)
- Focus only on increasing their profits, even if it tears society apart
These people don’t want things to evolve. They want to freeze the system in place, where they stay rich and powerful, and the rest of us just deal with the consequences.
The U.S. Budget: Designed for the Rich
The current U.S. budget—put forward by the Republican administration—is essentially a huge favour to the ultra-wealthy. It gives them massive tax breaks while:
- Piling on national debt (over $9 trillion!)
- Cutting programs that help everyday people: like public health, climate science, and support for seniors
Here’s how big $1 trillion is:
- 1,000 seconds = about 16 minutes
- 1 trillion seconds = 32,000 years
- 1,000 pennies = fits in a jar
- 1 trillion pennies = fills a football field
This debt is being used as a reason to defund important things that serve the public. Meanwhile, billionaires walk away with even more.
What Message Are They Sending?
This powerful elite is sending a clear signal:
"We only care about ourselves. Everything else—health care, the planet, equality, future generations—doesn’t matter."
They are refusing to:
- Deal with the climate crisis
- Protect LGBTQ+ people and people of colour
- Fund science, education, or global aid
- Take any responsibility for the harm they’ve caused
Even the Politicians Have Given Up
Many elected officials, especially Republicans, are no longer doing their jobs. They’re just going along with whatever the rich and powerful want. The writer says they’re just as guilty as the mob that stormed the U.S. Capitol on January 6th, because they’ve abandoned their duty to protect democracy.
And the Media? Mostly Distracting Us
The media often gives us false hope or distracts us with drama. We celebrate court rulings that don't really change anything, and pretend the system is still working. But this kind of denial has led to disaster before—in wars like Vietnam and Iraq, where people believed the government’s version of reality until it was too late.
So What Needs to Change?
The writer says we need big, real reforms like:
- Universal or mandatory voting (so everyone’s voice counts)
- Banning corporate money from politics
- Fully public-funded elections
Until we do that, nothing will change. We’ll just keep watching the destruction unfold while talking quietly among ourselves.
The Final Image: Quieting the Canaries
The metaphor at the end really stuck with me. The writer compares us to pet canaries, chittering in our cages as the world falls apart. And then the cloth gets draped over the cage at night. The song goes silent. Not because we’re free—but because we’ve been silenced.
My Thoughts
As a Canadian, it’s easy to feel like this is just a U.S. problem. But we’d be naive to think the same forces aren’t at work here—corporate greed, media distractions, growing inequality, and political apathy. We need to wake up and find ways to resist, to support each other, and to demand better.
Thanks to my American friend for sharing. Sometimes, even uncomfortable truths can help light the way.
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