A PENDING APOCALYPSE

I recently finished reading the book Russian Roulette, written by two veteran investigative reporters. The book was a detailed and well-researched description of how members of the Trump campaign conspired with Russia to influence the outcome of our recent Presidential elections. It should be required reading for anyone glued to Fox News.

Russia's hacking into various entities in our country has been occurring for a long time. There's no doubt that we are engaging in the same activities. The end of the USA won't be from troops landing on our shores or from a nuclear blast; it will be the systematic and successful hacking into our infrastructure. Apparently, Russia is better at it than we are. They now have the President they want sitting in the Oval––a man who has been compromised from shady financial dealings with Russian oligarchs for many years. It's almost like we've put out a "Welcome to the USA" cyber sign and allowed them to come on in and make themselves comfortable. Many of my fellow progressives believe that Mueller will save us all. He won' Trump has been at this game for a long time and has learned to keep his hands clean. His handlers might go down, but he won't. The Trump supporters' belief that Trump is their savior or God sent him is comical. Most people are getting bogged down in their belief systems and literally cannot see the forest for the trees. We've got a more significant battle raging than what we see in front of our faces.

It hasn't helped that our previous President knew about Russia not only hacking into our infrastructure but also that they were meeting with various people in the Trump campaign and had successfully hacked into both campaigns. Russia then u d the information to get Trump elected. Obama chose not to do or say anything because it might appear he was partisan. The Republican in Congress, who also knew about it, threatened Obama with a huge stink should he open his mouth. So, Obama folded and walked away to the enriching land of speeches.

Russia began hacking into our power and water systems as early as 2011. The cyberattacks accelerated in 2015 and 2016, coinciding with the Presidential campaigns. You'd have to be a fool to believe that it's coincidental. Since they now have a foothold in our infrastructures, it doesn't take a giant leap to understand the grave danger we are currently facing. Homeland Security recently reported, "The operating systems at nuclear plants also tend to be legacy controls built decades ago and didn't have digital control systems that can be exploited by hackers." I'm not comforted by Homeland Security's reassurances about our nuclear plants. Unfortunately, we have a President that will not honor Russian sanctions and continues to deny his ties to Russia. The longer Trump is in office, the surer it is that he can do whatever he wishes, and you can rest assured they will be in his best interests and not our country's.

The night I finished Russian Roulette, I began having nightmares. I dreamed that our power and water plants were shut down. The ensuing crisis was devastating, as we depend on electricity and water. Panic caused the crisis t to become even more dangerous. In the mad scramble for fo d and drinkable water, people died. Our dependency on electric y has created a situation where we're helpless without it. Some might think that solar power and even living off the grid while stockpiling food and medicine will save them. (Hint: no one is immune to being attacked by starving people.) One only has to read The Road by Cormac McCarthy to glimpse what happens to people and how they behave after an apocalypse.

A few months ago, I was in my bathroom when I suddenly had a vision of my house being without electricity and water for what appeared to be years. The walls were decaying, windows were left open, and the house's structure had drastically deteriorated. It was as if I were living in one of those abandoned structures in war-torn countries in the Middle East that you see on the news.

I'm deeply concerned about the Russians taking over our country. At this point, it wouldn't take much for them to sabotage our infrastructure and bring us to our knees. We will surrender after we are in our most vulnerable position and lives are lost. Welcome to the Russian Federation of America.

I fervently hope that none of those nightmares or visions become a reality. Other than the occasional bad dream and a wandering mind that repeats, "if that happens, then this will happen." I will continue to enjoy the pleasures of everyday living. I wouldn't be much fun to be around if I dwelled in "what if's." However, this should be a cautionary tale for everyone. If we don't try to make a change in our country's current leadership, I fear for the future. I am mentally prepared should a catastrophic event happen. Hopefully, it's too late. I can only pray that the angels or spirits will be there for us, no matter what.

In the meantime, I will squeeze as much out of this life as humanly possible. I will continue to do whatever I can to change the direction of this country, even if it's against the tide. One of the well-known leaders of my community recently cautioned that I would be ostracized if people knew about my political views. I told him I wasn't afraid of rejection, which is a familiar feeling. He doesn't know me very well.