On Friday, January 20, 2016 Donald Trump got the conch. As I watched the new President descending the steps of the Capitol to the deus for his inauguration all I could think about ... moreOn Friday, January 20, 2016 Donald Trump got the conch. As I watched the new President descending the steps of the Capitol to the deus for his inauguration all I could think about was William Golding’s classic 1954 novel Lord of the Flies. But instead of a group of British boys who find themselves deserted on an island in the Pacific Ocean that sends them down a dark path, it is America and the West who have officially lost control of order and morality, and are now descending into total savagery and chaos.Golding’s novel takes place during an unspecified nuclear war when a group of 25 boys are marooned on a tropical island. Although things get off to a reasonable start with Ralph elected leader and his fastidious organization of teams for shelter-building, food-gathering, and constant maintenance of a smoke signal fire, it doesn’t take long for the group to devolve into disarray with Jack seizing control and turning the boys into savages. What began as an island of reason, peace, and hope, eve... less
