We live in the now. That is about all that is certain. Some accept it and others do not. President Donald Trump appears to be incapable of doing anything but living in the now. And that confuses us no end. Because between our reactions and our actions there is generally a time lapse. With Trump, not so much. He executed a limited but still substantial attack on Syria with lightening speed as these things go.

Opinions galore

The people who live in the now include those who have opinions. Having an opinion is sort of a reality check. What do I think?

What should I think? Delay is more or less verboten. So the Internet is filled with opinions and soon they become the news. For example, there are people on the far right now known as populists who believe Trump was out of his mind to bomb a Syrian airbase in retaliation for the sarin attack on Syrians committed by Assad.

We did it

There are other opinions, including one that says the US launched the chemical attack or that the Russians helped Assad do it. There is the opinion that Trump will probably watch FOX News to figure out what to do next. This last one is mine.

Results

Then there are opinions about what will happen as a result of the attacks. One says that they are sure to rouse Russia and lead to heightened tensions. Another wave of opinions washed over Twitter, the import being that Donald was wrong to do what he did.

We do not want war with Syria, they said.

The Bard is back

The plethora of reactions is hardly a new phenomenon. All you have to do is read a few of the lines in Shakespeare when he allows observers to shower the audience with comments about what is going on. The only thing that changes is the medium. And with apologies to Marshall McLuhan, the messages remain about the same.

Anxiety

The probable cause of opinionating is anxiety, existential angst. When we don't really know what is going on, or what may happen, we become frightened. We lose our sense of confidence that tomorrow will be as yesterday was. Trump seems to make sure that no day is ever the same, as a good entertainer should. There are limits to anxiety.

If we really believed that war was afoot we would show it in more than tweets and screeds.

Donald Trump is not going to change

It is amusing to note the tendency of the New York Times to see a change a day. But contrary to the headline that is tweeted above, no change is signaled. That is because tomorrow Trump could be back doing something else. This is a boy in a candy shop. And there are lots of choices.
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