This is Paradise

I spent one of the last weekends of summer out on Long Island. People sailing on the bay. Families enjoying the beach. Children swimming in the ocean. Parents trying to catch up on their reading.

I went to the US Open to see Federer take apart his opponents. To watch the Williams sisters bring their particular brand of courage to the court once again. To see Henin hunker down and prevail.

I went to Radio City to hear Tony Bennett sing at a benefit for his arts education charity. Bennett, who brings more talent and musical history to a single performance than any ten artists, sang as beautifully as ever. But to see him at that great venue was a special evening. To be Tony Benett, the real Tony Bennett, for just one night. That would be something.

On Sunday, I attend the Emmys and hope my show fares well there and that we have a good season on NBC.

I live in New York and as 9/11 commemorations approach, I can't help but think that this city, this country of ours, this is paradise. Here. Now. Not some promise of where we may go in some Christian or Muslim depiction of an afterlife. All that one could hope for, that one could pray to God for, all that one could dream of having, without having to lie or steal or hurt another person in order to gain it, all of that is here on this Earth now.

Who is running for president that can remind us of that? Who, among all of these people, can promise to help us get our faith back? Who can promise us that they will lead us out of these horribly cynical times? Who can help us redefine our place in a world of ever shifting political realities? Who can gives us the courage to make the sacrifices we will certainly have to make in order to accommodate nature's new rules? Who can help us to overcome the awful shame we have endured during the past seven years?

My friend told me about a T-shirt she saw. "It's not the end of the world but I can see it from here." Perhaps the Earth possesses a self-purging mechanism. Perhaps we are destined to be purged, as the Earth seeks to balance its systems. In the meantime, I hold that this is paradise. Beautiful to the point of perfection. Well worth fighting for. That fight is on now and its first major battle is 14 months away.

Comments

[Dianekkdi]

Great post Alec. I love your optimism. Memories of days such as yours are to be cherished. I have them. I have always loved the long afternoon shadows on green grass. Those are some of my favorite days when that breath of peace reaches my soul.

[sherjean]

yeah, things are pretty great, even for those of us not in the Hamptons et al. However, that very situation fuels the complacency that can be our nemesis. Where are the movements of yesteryear? Sad to think that the real way to really get the nation charged up about Iraq is if we institute the draft...

[fact finder]

Mr. Baldwin, After listening to Old Fartly denigrate you the other night you and John Cusac along with Sean Penn became my favorite bloggers. I have always liked your acting . Keep up the good work. Amen and God bless you.

[bablyonuc]

alec good luck tonite at the emmy have a blast

[bablyonuc]

lets talk about long island alec we are the BEST....

[bablyonuc]

you got that right alec long island is the BEST...

[baglenmushie]

Alec-Once again a beautiful post, thought provoking, insightful and sad, Very sad that it requires circumstances to come to a critical point before there can be a consensus that there is a problem, and that it affects every living species. But will every person look out at the world, as you, and take responsibility for their part, whether active or by passivity, in destroying paradise. There is no political messiah man or woman, who is going to solve the problems of the country, much less the world. Not one of the candidates is able of reaching into the collective gut of the people and inspiring them intoaction, telling what is going to be expected of them to survive in the debilitated world that is going to come, giving them the challenge, the last one capable of doing that was JFK. Of the candidates at least with Clinton you get a two for one bargain, she is a strong woman, who has come out of pesonal turmoil, perhaps, as you say to rewrite her legacy, but to have the guts to do that publicly says a lot about the woman. Couple that with bringing a spouse experienced in internation affairs of state and on the job wisdom, it is a pairing hard to beat. No matter who is elected, they should grab the treasury and hand it over to NASA and charge them with finding a new planet for us to screw up-and fast. My very best wishes go out to you and those connected with your show, it would be gratifying to see your talents not only acknowledged but tangibly rewarded, with a long overdue Emmy.

[thaigoodlikeshirt]

I like it when you wax philosophical. Now I want to sit on the porch and watch the clouds glide across the night sky and sing No Woman No Cry. Oh, not really - my neighbors would hate that. Anyway, along that philosophical vein, I would say the answer to all the questions in the second to last paragraph, except the very first one, is "me, you, and each other." Of course, I'm not expecting an end any time soon nor am I seeing one on the horizon, even if my nightmares come true and I am burned at the stake for being a harlot or a heretic - a harlotic, maybe? But I have hope. I am patient. Humanity has seen, experienced and done a lot worse in the past and people have been a lot worse in the past as well and we are still here, the Earth and many living things are still here. You know what I saw today? I live in suburbia on the edge of a small wetland and I saw a groundhog waiting its turn to cross a major road, and when the opportunity came, it ran and made it across the other side and through the brush. Nature didn't intend for groundhogs to race machines but it's amazing to see what those critters can do when their mettle is put to the test.

[Outtaherehr]

Glad to see you back on the horse! I hope you win an Emmy this year as you deserve it for your perfomance on 30 Rock. Watching that show and your character was a great escape for me this past year. I am glad you are staying on board for a another season as the show would be 1/2 of what it is without you.

[ElMeroGuero]

If I had your money and access, I'd feel the same way.

[hiprogloho]

Oh, the world may seem like paradise for someone who can afford to see the US Open Final and Tony Bennett in concert. However, for the rest of us it is but an illusion of top 1 percent media master lies on the tube.

More people than died in Viet Nam are murdered by gangs, thugs and serial killers in this country each year. The FDA allows poisons in food and drugs that make people sick so chemical companies can get rich. And a biased media celebrates freaks or bohemian minorities while majorities have no access to or reflection of positive imagery of their own.

Meanwhile, our government is lead by bottom line, double life Machiavellian thieves and religious psychopaths who force upon us a new global order because they fear the second millennium, wish to balkanize the US into a 3rd world zoo and save tax free paradise for wealthy people who live behind gated communities.

It's easy to be positive when you're insolated or isolated from the truth by celebrity, fame and fortune. Those in high places are too comfortable to be negative and worry about the man on the street, who suffers the most from evil in the world and is then expected to fight our revolutions because some people have too much to lose or simply don't care.

[Northshoredude]

Alec:

I agree with the gist of what you are saying. But it is hard to be in "paradise" when so much is wrong with the world and human beings in particular. We are like a cancer on the earth and we will end up destroying ourselves and the planet. The planet will eventually recover. A liberal education is the key to survival, but I do not see that happening - especially in this country. The Rethgulicans love to starve education or get a bunch of home-schooled drones. We are doomed. However, I do love the simple things in life that I enjoy everyday, although living under the Bush delusion has been extremely depressing. Thanks for trying to lift our spirits a bit.

Peace

[Seafoam]

Thanks Alec for being a "bright spot on a gloomy scene". It is a shitty world but I take heart from all the good things that have been accomplished. We ended the cruelest form of slavery after a civil war, a hundred years later we ended apartheid, we got the women the right to vote, we got a minimum social security passed and we ended the Vietnam War. Americans became slightly more civilized -- like Canada. If you want to see our better angels and perfection on earth go to youtube and watch the heavenly duet of "Time to Say Goodbye" (Con Te Partiro) by Andrea Bocelli and Sarah Brightman

[Chapina]

Hi Alec, is the first time I wrote here. I'm from Guatemala, with all the troubles is also a paradise, I like your blog and I wish you the best luck for the Emmys.

[vginger]

Alex..great post..I enjoy the postive outlook where ever I find it...but ...along with agreeing with your thoughts...I also have this one running thru my mind..part of a song actually..from the yellow taxi?
They've (we've) paved Paradise and put up a Parking Lot.
Time to make some repairs along those lines..before Mother Nature decides she will take it all back on her own.
We need to become an Organic Society..in every sense of the word. V.