What the invisible hand cannot touch.

The United States House of Representatives refused to grant seven hundred billion dollars of taxpayer money to slap mortar on the burgeoning cracks in the foundation of the grand altar that is "the Economy", and as a result, stock markets the world over went for a bit of a tumble. Among the dwellers of the great beehives of Wall Street and the Docklands, panic has ensued. A nebulous cloud of uncertainty now hangs over the proletariat.

I can't say I'm all that worried.

"Good Heavens, why not?" one might ask, and rightfully so. After all, I have a home that needs heating, a mouth that needs feeding, lights that need to be kept on, and a mortgage to keep that roof over my head, all of which now lie in peril. How can one bear witness to this imminent calamity with such nonchalance?

Well, at the risk of corroborating Stephen Harper's accusations of rooting for the demise of our economy, I was waiting for this to happen, though I can't say I'm "rooting for" the despair left in its wake. I wish to advise Mr. Harper at this time that, contrary to what he may believe, it is this lifestyle, our way of doing things he espouses- nay, lauds, that has led us to the edge of this cliff, and it is our way of doing things that will send us tumbling down its jagged façade.

But... despair? Sure, our world will be turned on its ear, and times will be tough, but must we necessarily despair? I hate to say it, but at this stage in the game, perhaps we need something like this to happen to wake us from our collective coma and realize the comfort in which we immersed ourselves is but a warm, soft, steaming pile of shit (I have a friend to thank for this one; if he's reading, he knows who he is). The time has come to cease relying on politicians and bankers for sustenance, to cease pinning our hopes on those too rich to care about us, to look out for one another; in short, to empower ourselves.

We are witnessing the end of money, and with it, the germination of consciousness and a reacquaintance with our Earth Mother. Granted, we will have to learn to stand on our own two feet, which will take some time, but it will happen. There is enough land in the city - land we designate as "lawns" by transforming grass into carpet - to feed us, not to mention the rooftops that can house plant life, as well as the copious amounts of food we lay to waste. "They" might try to take your home, but what good will it do when the land loses its monetary value? Besides, despite it being some commodity in their eyes, you have made it your home, and no one has the right to take that from you.

In these times of economic peril, I'm not worried, for we are witnessing the end of our wanton destructive ways, and the dawn of something new, something that cannot be captured and sold at some market: the awakening of our collective love.