By Edwin Cooney
Some readers have, from time to time, expressed wonderment and even fascination with my ability to address a different and, sometimes, even a new topic every week. Of course, a lot of my topics are socio/political or historical, but seldom do I experience what is generally known as "writer's block." Then came yesterday afternoon and last evening. Suddenly there it was: writer’s block. It was SUDDENLY THERE: great as day, big as life, threatening to cement me in! Not even writing partial sentences unblocked my flow of thought. Not even one of the stories I'm about to tell you helped. Then came the night and rest. Suddenly, in the wee small hours of the morning, it all came back identifying itself to me — plain as day! The key components to the solution of every riddle is twofold — knowledge of its cause and comprehension of its effect!
My problem last night was just plain fatigue. Since fatigue was the cause, writer's block had to be the effect. Like a visit from an energizing lover in the night, I was restored for the morrow!
Back in the late 1990s, when our Methodist pastor in Alameda, California, Reverend Mark Bollwinkel, would develop what one might call "preacher's block," he would make the block itself the subject of his sermon in the form of an open prayer to the Almighty! That type of sermon would open his mind to the turmoils his congregation was surely encountering while at the same time effectively making his parishioners aware of both his awareness and sympathy of their very personal and individual challenges.
Of course, when one is genuinely searching for the cause of an event or state of being, one is better served the fewer preconceptions one has about the origin of the cause during the investigation of the situation. It's also vital to keep in mind that the effects of a cause can vary.
For instance, one may reasonably say that President Donald Trump was the immediate cause of what occurred back on January 6th, 2021, but the origins, uncertainties, and anticipated resentment and bitterness about questions surrounding presidential elections go back as far as 1800 to the days of John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and Aaron Burr.
(I expect that someone will write a comprehensive history of contested presidential elections very soon indeed. They've already been written about in summary form, but a huge study will probably be available soon at your local bookstore or on an accessible website.)
Another legitimate topic for examination right now in view of Vladimir Putin's possible invasion of Ukraine would be a comparison of the similarities and contrasts and the causes of World Wars I and II in 1914 and 1939.
From the very outset of my authorship of these columns I've had three overall goals: to inform; to stimulate and to entertain the reader. Although I'm a man of numerous opinions, I don't teach doctrines, be they religious or political. I may offer testimony as to the worthiness of a doctrine, but its adoption is your business, not mine! Doctrines generally reflect attitudes based on experiences.
Inquiry into cause and effect of a historic event is the key to all knowledge and understanding of any event.
I hope my weekly interest in — and search for — cause and effect causes you, the reader, to wonder why and how even more than it enables you to know! After all, so long as you wonder, it is likely that your knowledge will be even more comprehensive regardless of the topic!
As for those "lovers in the night," bring 'em on!
RESPECTFULLY SUBMITTED,
EDWIN COONEY
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