If I were king, what treasures would I fling
By Sid Schwab / Herald Columnist
If I were to discover that any thought I had or any demand I were to make would be actualized, I wouldn’t use that power to rename bodies of water.
Because I’m not a psychopathic narcissist, I wouldn’t decide to take over a national artistic institution and declare — like “Soviet Realism” back in the day — what art is and is not acceptable. Or threaten to shut down news agencies; not even Fox. I wouldn’t stop sending food to starving people around the world or issue edicts intended to harm LGBTQ+ people. Or, for that matter, anyone.
Nor would I ban words. I wouldn’t demand that critical information about diseases and science be removed from circulation. Because my grandchildren’s future concerns me above all, I wouldn’t denude the Environmental Protection Agency or push for more pollution or end support for renewable energy. No one who’s not a walking ICD-10 would do any of those things.
In the wake of a sudden spate of airplane disasters, firing hundreds of people at the FAA responsible for maintaining air traffic control infrastructure wouldn’t happen. Same with nuclear safety workers, meat inspectors, forest rangers, federal inspectors general, and ethics watchdogs. Given the rapid rise of influenza, bird flu, RSV, and who knows the next one, I wouldn’t gut the CDC. Only a lunatic would.
https://www.heraldnet.com/opinion/schwab-if-i-were-king-what-treasures-would-i-fling/