The Recyclables: Can We Listen for a Change?

By Kalma Downe

Too much angst for you? Me too. This is an attempt to show how silly and dangerous the my way or the highway attitudes have become.

The allegory takes place in a zero sort recycling bin with national left and right wing newspapers arguing over contemporary topics like healthcare, gun control and more. There are lovers triangles and hacked cars to lighten some of the heavier dialogue.

The author believes we are more in agreement, at least regarding goals than we might think. If we can stop talking past each other with a bit more respect, we might accomplish something.

With the world being economically entwined and getting more dangerous, we need a press core we can depend on.

Can you be more open to other thoughts and different people?

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Oct 20, 2017
• ISBN: 9781546208488

Book preview

AuthorHouse™

1663 Liberty Drive

Bloomington, IN 47403

www.authorhouse.com

Phone: [phone]

© 2017 Kalma Downe. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse  10/19/2017

ISBN: 978-1-5462-0847-1 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-5462-0848-8 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2017914175

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

New American Standard Bible (NASB)

Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation

Contents

Introduction

Saturday Recycling

Sunday Education

Monday Discrimination

Tuesday Healthcare

Wednesday Election Results

Thursday Gun control

Friday Conclusions, Possibilities

Introduction

Thank you for buying this book.

Writing a book is not an easy undertaking. With the considerate support of my family and friends it would never have been finished.

I want to send special thanks to Diane Haymes for her considerable help with Monday’s chapter on discrimination. Thanks Diane.

This is being written during and after the 2016 presidential election period. What has prompted this effort is that except for the Civil war, people in this country seem to be divided more than at any other time. There have been violent actions with tragic results. It seems to be getting worse. I like history and I will be the first to say I don’t know if there has ever been a time in the history of this country where people truly got along. There have always been differing views on almost any topic. That, in itself is not only not a bad thing, it should and can be a good thing. Even if we do not agree with each other, our different backgrounds different opinions and different walks of life can and should be a forum for us to learn from each other. In that way, we can grow as a nation, as a people and individuals. Our differences can and should be our strengths and not our downfall.

I believe America continues to be the land of opportunity. You can get rich if you want to. It isn’t easy, never was and never should be, but it is possible. You can be elected to represent people – even the highest office in the land can be yours with a lot of hard work - - and money, mostly money. I think large corporations and congress have made it harder in recent times for small and start-up companies to succeed. Large companies do not like competition and they have the clout in Washington to get laws enacted that make it harder for small companies to succeed. Starting and running a business isn’t easy even in good times, but laws that make it harder to be successful should not be passed. Clearly, Big Box operations move into towns and wreck small businesses. Is that always bad? Is it always good? Who knows, but there needs to be room for small businesses to get started. Small companies bring one vital thing to the table that we can all benefit from – new ideas – innovation – ‘good old American ingenuity’. We need better paying jobs and that alone, I believe would go a long way to dampening the angst that seems to be everywhere.

For too many, things look awful everywhere. As mentioned, we still really represent the land of opportunity. For those who see doom everywhere, for perspective, please travel to other nations. Almost any country will do. I believe by making realistic comparisons with other nations, you will see a lot more good in the U.S.

It is my strong belief that a root cause of the current angst and division has to do with what counts as news. Electronic media, which seems void of usable content and facts, spews commentaries that have an agenda and are presented as if they were factual news. Divisive outrageous comments appear to be focused on ratings as opposed to informing the public of things that matter. It seems that some of the inflammatory ‘fake news’ is the results of hacking by other nations. The good news here is the term Fake News seems to be making people look closer, question more. The term alone offers nothing of value – we still get lots of fake news and it is sometimes hard to tell the difference, but I think increased awareness to be on the lookout for fake news is a good thing. Question more, assume less.

As a history buff, I believe the founding fathers intended the first amendment - freedom of speech - was intended as a way for the press to keep tabs on governments and industry for the benefit of the general population. It is perfectly legal and acceptable for us to elect incompetent and even corrupt officials. It is not acceptable however, for the press to not be informing the general population of shenanigans by government officials and large corporations. Maybe naïve, but I do not believe governments need to be or act corrupt in order to govern effectively. I also do not believe that large corporations need to operate on the backs of its employees.

We need factual, balanced, dependable, researched, revealing news now more than ever. We have a new government that has vowed to ‘Make America Great Again. Almost none of the Executive branch have political backgrounds. They are used to having their way in running businesses or Generals used to barking orders. A phrase that has helped me in many business situations is Politics’ is the art of the possible". I hope our new government takes hold of that thought. While I think anyone and everyone feels improvement is needed, the new government bears watching. We need valid reporting and a lot less editorializing disguised as news. That leads me to why I wrote this book and how it is constructed.

My goal is to encourage you to at least listen to those you disagree with. Much of the angst we see is caused by talking past each other, not listening, and generally being closed minded to any words or views that differ with yours. My hope is you will be more open to at least consider different views, and most importantly, have deeper respect for other people. It won’t be easy but it needs to happen. I think if we listen ‘between the lines’ so to speak, we will discover we are more in agreement than differ.

Certainly, current issues we face provide much good reason to be angry. One item that is in the news all too often is police officers clearly overreacting or acting badly when dealing with people who are doing nothing wrong and following officers commands. Sadly, these instances have lethal endings way too often. In other cases where the police officer is rational, lethal endings could have been avoided if people had followed police orders. There are horrifying examples of completely innocent, law abiding people following orders and getting shot anyway. While tragic, it is good that these tragedies get exposed. As bad as these stories are, being reported accurately can have positive impact. Police and citizens are more aware of how far apart they have grown. Recognizing that attitudes and lack of respect are often the root cause of tragic actions. Police and communities are starting to develop better relationships. It’s a start. Good things are possible.

This story takes place in a zero-sort recycling bin. Anything recyclable can enter. The key characters are an Aluminum pot, A national left wing liberal newspaper The Daily Dove, a national right wing conservative newspaper The Hawk Herald. The driveway throw-away paper – The Driveway Nail is the voice of reason.

The Aluminum Pot is the emcee of sorts – aluminum is the most valuable material we recycle – and his job is to announce the new items that enter the bin.

Just as in the news, the national papers argue extreme points of left or right views. The often-overlooked driveway throw-away paper is typically written by real reporters. People who truly can get to the heart of a story. As the saying goes, All politics is local and the local papers should get much more attention and respect in my view. The role of the Daily Nail is to be the voice of reason for the extreme views of the left and the right.

In order to mitigate the heavy nature of strong disagreement, there are other characters intended to offer some distraction and humor to the book.

There are lovers’ triangles between a rum bottle, cola bottle and a crystal decanter. In the house, there is a husband, wife and a teenage son. The wife is having an affair and drinks too much. The son is always high on marijuana, and the husband is in the twilight of his career. There is a whole house automation system that pulls pranks on the wife and her boss.

The book starts on Saturday as the recycling truck has just picked up on Friday and will again on the next Friday. There are seven chapters, one for each day of the week. Each day the papers argue about an important topic, like the education, discrimination, gun control, the federal election results and so on until the recycling truck comes again. Issues like gun control get heavy because they are serious discussions. In those cases, the Daily Nail attempts to find some avenue for less angst and some level of agreement.

Like everyone, I certainly have opinions about issues in the book. I have strived to keep my opinions out of it, letting you the reader form or change your own opinions based on seeing the other side more clearly. My goal in writing the views of the left and right as accurately as I can is to show some foundation or folly in being so extreme.

By personifying items in a recycling bin and focusing alternative light on issues I think divide us, I am trying to show both sides without being too insulting or offensive to any person or specific group. With serious and even dangerous opinions and views that divide us, the story can be heavy at times. I have tried to balance the weightier parts by injecting a bit of humor and drama within the recycling bin. I think a recycling bin is a great setting because like the items in the bin, we will all be recycled in one form or another.

This book is not about religious or financial wars – but then again, it is. If we could learn to listen to different views, even if those views are presented in antagonistic ways, it is best to respect and listen and not take antagonistic bait. Remember, cooler heads generally prevail. All of us know people we think are idiots or worse. Fine. Let them rant as long as no one or anything gets hurt, it is all good.

Lastly, this is about individuals. While the national papers represent views of the left and right, they are presented mostly in an individualistic way. Only two groups are pointed out – the brown beer bottles and the blue beer bottles. That is by design. If we want to make things better (Note, I avoided saying ‘fix’ things) we need to act as people. Labeling entire groups is generally wrong, even dangerous. But the beer bottle groups need to work as groups. Individual efforts are certainly good, but only if the brown and blue bottles can work together with deeper understanding of the other will things improve.

Thank you again for buying this book. If it makes you at least consider the other side – whichever that is, might have a point, I will have achieved my goal. - Kalma Downe, Maine 2017

Saturday

Recycling

Aluminum pot: Now I find myself inside a zero-sort recycling bin. I feel kind of sad being all alone after years of cooking great dishes in the house. The recycling truck just came yesterday, so except for me, this place is empty.

Crash, Bang, Thud, Tinkle, Tinkle, Gong. Thud.

Great – I am no longer alone! Who just came in? I see wine bottles, green beer bottles and a plastic soda bottle. Have you been here before?"

Chardonnay bottle: Huh?

Aluminum pot: Have you been recycled before? We are in a recycling bin.

Chardonnay bottle: I don’t know. This seems new and scary for me. I just held fermented grape juice for the lady in the house to get drunk.

Aluminum pot: The people who live in the house that we came from recognize that we all have value beyond what they initially used us for. By putting us into this recycling bin, they will be doing their part to not trash the planet. Things will be added all week long until the recycling truck comes on Friday to take us away. At the recycling center, we will be sorted out based on what we are made of and ultimately sent to another place to be reused for a different purpose; something new.

Chardonnay bottle: What do you mean used for different purpose? How do you know all this stuff anyway?

Aluminum pot: "Well, you are made out of glass. Glass has lots of uses besides being wine bottles. Glass is basically melted sand and has been recycled for hundreds of years. It’s likely that you will be melted down again and changed into something else. Maybe you will become a window for somebody’s house or another kind of bottle. Maybe you will be a wine glass, stained glass for a church, or a car window where you would get to see all sorts of fun places. Maybe you would become a lens in binoculars or a telescope – looking at birds and stars - what fun that would be. Being recycled – looking to a brighter future can be fun to think about.

I understand recycling because I have been recycled before and I remember it. Being made out of aluminum means that I have many, many uses in people’s