The times we live in.

And why I'm now reading the Iliad.

We're in a small town outside of Cambridge, cat-sitting for a week or so. What has struck me most is that we're in a house with absolutely no books of any size, shape, or description.

To me, that's very strange. Hell, when we packed for this move I included The Iliad (Emily Watson's new translation), a translation of Beowulf, because it seemed appropriate, and an anniversary copy of Ulysses, by James Joyce.

I grew up in the Kelowna Public Library, and no matter where I've lived, a library card is the first thing I collect. I've also owned, I don't know, several hundred books over the years. And have subscribed to various magazines and newspapers, and now, blogs and websites.

Because, for me, reading is how I learn new ideas, explore old ones, and generally understand the world that we live in. Despite YouTube, SubStack, e-mail, and TikTok, the printed text still remains the most effective and precise way to distribute information - and reading is always a lot faster than watching a stupid video.

I honestly know nothing of the latest right-wing jerk to get himself killed, but from posts I've seen on BlueSky I'm sure he was just another racist asshole, and had nothing of value to offer me. The problem of course is that the President of the US is the same kind of jerk, and is influenced by, or influences, these jerks - that's a frightening problem.

And yes, those kinds of jerks are in Canada too.

When I was living in Kentucky, just before 9/11, I was astonished when a small county near us actually voted to not have a public library. To me, it is such a fundamental part of every city and town that it was incomprehensible that any parent would vote against it.

But they did. They decided that educating their children (and trust me, schools suffer the same kind of restrictions in rural Kentucky) was not worth paying a tiny amount more in taxes.

That dynamic is what I see playing out in the US today, and in Canada, and in the UK. More and more, the idea of children sitting for hours reading books is becoming the exception, replaced by watching videos on-line. Perhaps more importantly, the idea of children sitting down and reading any book that catches their eye, with no-one filtering what they see, is under threat, while kids of all ages can see all manner of utterly dire and dangerous video content with no concern.

What I see playing out in the US, and Canada, and the UK, frightens me. I believe, truly believe, that an educated population is one that will act responsibly and with thought. I think that people who are widely read will generally see the big picture, and will understand that we, as a population, need to support each other in order to have a happy and safe society.

Today I see ill-educated idiots - and no, a tech qualification is not the same as reading Joyce or Homer - whose entire existence is about making insane amounts of money, with no regard for any other person on the planet. I see politicians who have been drawn into the same mindset - where the almighty profit-margin is all that matters - setting government policy, and where pleasing donors is more critical than taking a moral stand on any issue.

And yes, I'm pointing the finger at Mark Carney and other Canadian politicians who still back fossil fuel extraction, and who seem unwilling to stand up and call out Israel for its genocide of the Palestinians.

I find myself instead in Britain, where the supposedly "Labour" Prime Minster seems in love with Donald Trump, and again is inexplicitly terrified of the idea of saying "Killing Palestinian children is wrong."

And in London, yesterday, right-wing racists were attacking police, but UK politicians seem unable to condemn that behaviour.

In many ways, I am truly loving Britain, but sights like a hundred-thousand racists marching on London make me very uncomfortable. And yes, I understand that this is a symptom of a larger Western phenomenon, and is not just Britain.

So here I sit, wondering what my next steps should be. Or if I, as an individual, can even really push back against the direction that Western society seems to be moving.

More and more I find that I default to kindness, and to supporting those around me who need help. In the past, when I was at my lowest, that sort of support was crucial. Now, when I am able to do so, I feel that I should play a similar role.

The question that is turning over in my mind is this: how can I make that compassion something that the powerful, and the governments, also embrace?