Only 1% care. And of those, only 1% really care. And of that 1% of 1%, they are only able to care about 1%; (I just don't believe that we as humans are capable of moving very far outside the swirling funnel of our self for very long to really care about others much more than 1%; or 10% if you're an optimist; or 49% if you're functionally delusional). Understanding the human need for validation, I optimistically started out writing 10%. But depending on your personal disposition, it could as easily be 0.1%. Or 0.000001%. The point, (no matter where it is placed), is that I am mostly alone. And that is okay because the point applies to each and every one of us.

I am seeking comfort in this and perhaps it comes from knowing that I am not alone in my loneliness; we are each alone together. It is the ultimate equity; though some would argue, claiming a significant other, or children, or parents, or best friends, or 2,000 Facebook friends, or 49% of the vote. And perhaps there are flush times in one's life when one or more of the 1% markers doubles or even triples, but I believe anyone even a little more than marginally functional understands that each one of us, most of the time, is essentially mostly alone.

This understanding forces me to acknowledge that I cannot save the world; but I also understand that if I work hard toward that end, I am more likely to be productive. Productivity though, can be misguided. As generative output, productivity may sometimes result in regress, destruction and death, rather than progress, restoration and survival. So it is probably good that because I am mostly alone, by myself I am unlikely to succeed in my efforts to save the world.

Yet there are a few individuals, drunk on power, in positions in which misguided efforts are not checked by the fact that they are mostly alone. And there are a few small groups that have maneuvered into a place in which they can influence these individuals and intentionally impose and administer a misguided ideology. How did this happen? This is not as much a condemnation of specific individuals or specific factions as it is of a system gone awry; a system that allows the will of a minority to manage the rights of the majority; a system that allows only two parties and the divisiveness they companionably engender and perpetuate; a system that allows the synonymity of wealth and power and the anonymity of me and you. So until we unskew the system, we must choose our representative personnel very carefully.

In this next week we have an opportunity to choose. It appears we have two options: 1) regress or (at best) inaction, or 2) a baby step. It is a shame that because of a system gone awry, we cannot choose the rights of the majority. It is a shame that because of a system gone awry, we cannot choose to begin filling in the wealth gap. It is a shame that because of a system gone awry, we cannot choose education or justice or expertise. It is a shame that because of a system gone awry, we cannot choose verity or compassion or respect. It is a shame that because of a system gone awry, we cannot choose the future. It is a shame that because of a system gone awry, we cannot even choose our Constitution.

The system is skewed and the people are screwed, no matter our choice. And this is the basis of why so many of us will cast our vote for an issue such as gun rights or right to life; or a belief such as the superiority of one race or one religion or one nation; or a longing for the glory of misremembered good old days. And this is the basis of why so many of us will cast our vote for the candidate we are less afraid of. And this is the basis of why so many of us will choose to not cast a vote at all. I understand.

But if, instead of fear, we could bring ourselves to vote from a thoughtful consideration of progress, the future, our survival, perhaps this upcoming week we could take a baby step. And perhaps from there we could begin to unskew the system. And perhaps from there we could extend the lifespan of the human species. Or perhaps it is already too late.

But to believe it is already too late is to squelch productivity, maintain status quo, give up. I refuse to believe it is too late. And because I refuse to give up, this upcoming week I will vote for the possibility of survival and justice and compassion alongside the certainty of politics and power and ego. I will vote for all of humanity alongside unavoidable partisan self-interest. I will vote for the possibility of a rebuilt future over the resurrection of a failed past. I will vote for a baby step forward over a stumbling step backward.

This upcoming week I will vote.

And this upcoming week I will continue to work toward saving the world.

If we all did that, just think what we might accomplish.