A recent post by David Warren tells an interesting little story. You can read it complete here. There we are told of a “particularly obtuse copy-editor” who provoked a funny reaction from young David.

A quick search of the omnipresent search engine gave me:

“An obtuse person is someone who is slow to understand, insensitive, or stupid. They may have difficulty comprehending things, or may not be clear or precise in their thoughts or expressions. For example, someone might be described as obtuse if they are unwilling to try to understand something that is obvious, or if they refuse to see something that is apparent to others.”

The same sources informed me that:

The word obtuse comes from the Latin word obtusus, which means dull or blunt.

I remember having many encounters of that kind in my life. Obtuse people —I am much less elegant to express myself than David, I call them idiots when I am being nice— are generously sprinkled around this troubled planet. I was not aware of their presence for a long while. They seem to be everywhere lately and they are more abundant than they used to be.

They also seem to abound in positions of power. As Peter Sinfield noticed around 1968 in a song I still remember:

The fate of all mankind I see
Is in the hands of fools

There seems to be many apparently foolish things happening in the world. Perhaps they are not foolish but malicious but I will leave the conclusion to you. Among many others …

  • The old Nixonian petrodollar died recently.
  • The production of fertilizers and food is (artificially) under heavy stress.
  • Russia seems to be cornered into a difficult situation that could trigger an even more serious reaction.
  • A variety of infirmities seem to be popping all over the world. Many of them have been announced very precisely in the media years in advance.
  • The health of the general population in the West seems also under stress and many countries may have difficulties keeping a standing army.
  • The birthrates of many nations are declining worldwide.

I do not desire nor I am announcing a large war but the current situation seems quite serious to me.

I hope I am wrong but I would not be surprised if 2024 ends badly. I do not mean to scare anyone but it seems to me that our political leaders are being obtuse or worse. This is not a time to handle ham-fisted the delicate balance of the world we inhabit.

It is quite early in the morning here in Buenos Aires. I woke up earlier than usual and I lingered in bed in this southern hemisphere cold morning of August. As I opened my eyes one thought popped in my mind: Pope Roncalli (John XXIII) ascended to the papacy October 28, 1958. He called the II Vatican Council. We are almost at the end of 70 years since the demolition began during his watch. Seven decades is a nice round biblical number.

I hope you can sleep soundly because I can’t.

 

Don’t miss the most recent post by David Warren in The Catholic Thing.