Exhaustion

Everyone outside the office today, between the front door of the building and the train station, looked unhappy. There are times that appears to be the true face of the Crisis: people unhappy, uncertain, considering and reconsidering their options. The guy who doesn’t like his job but unable to switch; people dealing with a street that’s been taken over for film work, helping the economy but still a pain; grimly tapping cards at the office doorway, at train turnstiles, for the friendly sheriff’s representatives who are helping ensure fare compliance. Pushing to get more done means more probably DOES get done, although it’s effort going into work that might instead go into reading a book, learning to play an instrument, reducing clutter around the house or office, making sure your spouse or offspring are a tiny bit happier. Not like it’s going to change. 

Another attribute mentioned to describe the High is the exhaustion related to the Crisis, that once the peak is passed, nobody is in any mood to assign all resources to the government, nor to invest more blood or gold in a massive fighting effort. (There may be some residual patriotism or exceptionalism that is sufficient to convince enough that a small country like Korea or Vietnam could be pacified, no problem.) McArthur wasn’t allowed to take on China, and Patton wouldn’t have succeeded in declaring war on Russia.  There’s a surprisingly fine line, though, between folks who are too tired to support more war, and those too annoyed with their current situation to let it continue on without a fight.