Imagine an apocalyptic novel, a “thriller” where a country is torn by political strife, has a crumbling infrastructure, is decimated by an uncontrollable plague and seethes with roving bands of armed militants.

Sounds frightening, right? But does it sound familiar?

The U.S. has two major political parties that refuse to cooperate. At least we now have a president who takes his job seriously. The past president dismissed our most pressing problems while falsely insisting he won an election. However, will internecine warfare in Congress allow President Joe Biden to do the jobs that our previous president ignored?

We now have vaccines for COVID-19, but will they be effective as the virus mutates? Could another more deadly plague be just over the horizon?

A depressingly large number of citizens do not believe in medical science, ignoring Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines. These same people blame events such as the ones in Texas, with freakish weather and infrastructure mismanagement, on a liberal cabal. Anything they don’t like is a hoax or fake news. Their fealty to the ex-president is astonishing.

America has been the pre-eminent country in the world for 75 years, but that role could diminish in the near future. Our country needs to adopt a mindset, such as we had in World War II. Our legislators must work together to solve the challenges ahead, rather than just doing what is politically expedient to get themselves re-elected.

If this can be accomplished, our “thriller” need not have a tragic ending.

William Rice,

Butler