CARLTON FLETCHER: Greatness is a fleeting quality in today’s world

I, I will be king, And you, you will be queen. … We can be heroes, just for one day.

— David Bowie

I’ve been taking a wider look at our world lately, and one thing hit me in my musing: Where are the great people of these existing generations?

I don’t mean people who do a great thing or two and then settle into obscurity; I mean the people whose works and actions will live on long after they’ve departed this plane of existence.

Yes, there are people doing great things today — and people doing tremendously awful things, too — but there are no people whose works will be remembered for centuries … except maybe people whose overwhelming evil have historic-level implications.

I think the closest we have in today’s world of someone who’ll have the kind of lasting impact that will be talked about in history books and among the peoples of the world is Russian Premiere Vladimir Putin. This evil, heartless man is hell-bent on “recapturing” countries of the old Soviet Union, and his apparent plan is to retake the former Soviet states one by one, starting with Georgia and now Ukraine.

There is no call by his people to achieve this dubious bit of treachery, this sending their sons and daughters to die at the hands of people who are fighting Russian invaders to protect their homeland. But Putin continues to send troops into battle, using their lives to feed his ego, never mind that the overwhelming majority of the world sees him for the cowardly dictator he is.

Here at home, Donald Trump has the capacity to bring such dishonor to his name and on this country, provided he follows through with all his campaign promises. (Of course, given the “accomplishments” of his first term, I don’t think we have to spend a lot of time fretting over the possibility.) But Trump is working toward creating the kind of country he admires, dictatorships run by evil little men who manage to grasp power through fear.

Trump is not a person to fear; he’s proven to be pretty much a coward throughout his adult life, his Putin-like ego convincing him that he can do anything he wants with impunity. Of course, surrounding himself with a bunch of buffoons, filling his cabinet with unqualified sycophants who will bow to his will and pay homage by doing his bidding — plus, let’s don’t forget the myopic MAGA faithful who are apparently willing to die for this cretin — and Trump could, at the least, destroy enough of the fabric of this nation to set it back decades.

What about artists? Where are the Beethovens? The Michelangelos? The Beatles? The Martin Luther Kings? The Willie Mayses? The Joe DiMaggios? The Julius Irvings? The Joe Montanas? The Otis Reddings? The Rolling Stones? The Margaret Thatchers? The Ernest Hemingways? The FDRs? The Quincy Joneses? 

Where are the people whose works of greatness will be heard, read and discussed for untold centuries?

You say: How about Taylor Swift? (Don’t make me puke!) What about Jay Z? (He still has 99 problems, and Diddy is one of the big ones.) Barack Obama? (He let his opportunity for greatness slip away.) Brian Kemp? (You need to change your prescription.)  Adele? (Doesn’t want such a mantle.) Mike Tyson? (He’s become a sideshow, tarnishing what looked to be greatness with idiotic money-making schemes.) Meryl Streep? (Wayyyyyy overrated.) Patrick Mahomes? (Hmmmmm, he was whiny after his first Super Bowl loss, but he might be a candidate … let’s see how he handles mega-fame.) Elon Musk? (A money-whore who cares not one whit about anyone but himself … and, apparently, his future boss in the White House.)

In a world where greatness is often measured by how many “likes” you get on social media and how outlandish your music, books, art and proclamations are, the people who in the past have held positions that thrust them to greatness are being replaced  by disposable celebrities, whose lights shine brightly for a brief moment in time and then burn out, often dramatically.

No, even by today’s meager measures, there are no great men or women on the horizon. This is the age of disposable leaders … just add money and watch them burn out into oblivion.