To think that we spent so much time studying the internal contradictions and crisis tendencies of global capitalism —there are books, studies, and papers galore by many scholars and think tanks — and then, to the surprise of nearly all of us, the triggering mechanism of a global economic crisis turns about to be a lethal and transmittable virus that is undetectable to the human eye.

Life, as we are finding out once again, surprises, or said differently, takes very unexpected turns. And that should be a warning against closed systems of thinking and acting. At this moment, we find ourselves in a wholly unimaginable situation. And it will entail some altogether new ways of understanding, interacting, and changing if we hope to escape it and live in a livable, egalitarian, and sustainable world.

“There is no road, no simple highway between the dawn and the dark of the night.” A Great Song that the Greatful Dead brought into our lives, or at least some of us.

We could easily become an example of Naomi Klein’s “disaster capitalism” on a grand scale in the coming months and maybe longer as the predatory nature of capitalism attempts to turn a pandemic and human misery into a profit windfall.

Robbie Robertston of The Band wrote this iconic song and The Band, of course, arranged, played and popularized it. Robertson is from Canada. As a child he and his mother would visit their family living on the Six Nations Reserve southwest of Toronto, Ontario where his mother was raised. It was here that Robertson was mentored in playing guitar by his older cousin Herb Myke. The Band, in my estimation, was our Beatles. In the movie, Last Waltz, which, if you like good music, you should see, The Band performs, The Weight, with the Staples Singers. And that’s special too.

From afar it seems like Democratic leaders in the House and Senate are doing a commendable job in their efforts to fight for a people first stimulus package that addresses the crises that are quickly overtaking the country. They have to be mindful of the fact that they control only the House as well as the growing pressure from tens of millions to pass a stimulus bill, even if it isn’t perfect. It’s one thing to come up with the perfect bill; that’s easy. it’s quite another to get in the mud and come up with the best package possible given the political realities of the nation’s capital. Good leaders and activists don’t assume them away, but face them squarely and proceed ahead.