“We are witnessing
transitions
from social-welfare states
to social-control states
around the world.
“We are witnessing a
global crisis,
unprecedented in its
magnitude,
ecological degradation
and social deterioration.
“Unprecedented
in the sheer scale
of violence.”
The words waited, quietly,
while I drained a glass of
pinot grigio.
The hydrangea bushes
nodded softly in a late
summer air,
a bee hovering without
sound across petals.
A long row
of men and women
walked past the sidewalk
café
in sharp suits, carrying
laptop cases.
Unprecedented
in the sheer scale
of silence.
