Back when we lived South of the Caribbean, most of the time you could smell when something was about to happen. There was this sense of impending change-not-for-the-better in the air that made you buy that extra can of tuna or one more roll of toilet paper every time you went grocery shopping. You tapped you “connected” friends so they could get you one box of ammo from the government stores and started to hoard gasoline for your generator.

It was a tiresome existence to say the least. Most of the time the gloom & doom faded away but sometimes shit did hit the turbine with the usual mayhem, looting and killing by all parties. You went into lockdown, armed up with whatever crummy gun and few rounds of ammo you managed to scrounge, prepared incendiary devices and pray that somebody else but you caught trouble. Yes, not a very christian thing but when you have seen totally deranged mobs doing their thing, you become less nice about life and the goodnes of human nature.

The thing is I am feeling a bit of that old black cloud hanging on top of us. Maybe it is just the overdose of information with the 24 hour news cycle augmenting everything, but maybe it is not. I feel we are coming at a crossroads on how our country is going to run for the remaining of the century. There is a severe split between the People and the government which has been insulated in its own layer of self-importance. I am seeing more self-determination in individuals and this is not setting well with the Powers That be, not one bit.

The Congressional elections was the first call, the shift of power was tectonic and we haven’t seen the beginning of change yet. Wisconsin was loud trumpet call against the entrenched power of those favored by the Goverment and they got seriously mad. The recall of Miami Dade Mayor Alvarez was a direct slap on the face to elected officials.  Nobody thought that a movement against a latino figure by a caucasian billionaire who does not speak Spanish in a 65% latino county had a snowflake chance in hell to come about.

The White House seems to be fumbling with their genitalia and even more disconnected from the People that any other government before. They see something happening, but I don’t think they know what to do since not one of the pre-programmed formulas appear to be working. At any other time, the Arizona Shooting would have produced an avalanche of anti-gun legislation sure to pass with great congressional support, yet not only it did not happen, but the People came out strong against any restrictions on Freedom and placing the blame where it laid: The Crazy Shooter. The level of disdain against political opportunists is so great that they are literally losing it. Chicago’s Mayor Daley offered to shove a rifle up to a journalist’s butt and NYC Mayor Bloomberg accused the American people of not caring about imposing more gun control.

Although we should be celebrating these baby steps against the self proclaimed political royalty, we must remember that they will not relinquish it quietly or even peacefully. They will do whatever is necessary to maintain it and although I doubt they will have the balls to go Mubarak or Gaddaffi, I expect them to reach deep inside their bags of dirty tricks and, if some deaths happen they will not care as long as the end result is their consolidation in power. We better be ready.

So, stock up your pantry, load up your magazines and keep your computer malaware free. We are in the middle of interesting times and have a front row seat.