Two years ago my son, Josh, gave me a fascinating birthday present, this clock that runs backward.  He engineered it himself, working with a cheap battery-powered wall clock.  He told me that he got it right on his third try.

Here’s a photo, taken this morning.  The clock reads 1:16

Underneath the clock is the ‘certificate of authenticity’ that accompanied Josh’s gift, which reads: 

THIS IS AN AUTHENTIC ‘HENCEFORTH ELECTRO-MECHANICAL SERIES 3’ TIMEPIECE. THERE IS NO NEED TO SET IT, AS IT IS ALREADY SET TO ITS OWN TIME.

TO FULLY ENJOY THE BENEFITS OF YOUR TIMEPIECE, IT IS ADVISABLE TO REMOVE, COVER, OR DISABLE ALL OTHER TIME-KEEPING EQUIPMENT IN THE AREA IF YOU HAVE NOT DONE SO ALREADY.

SHOULD THERE BE A PROBLEM, ONE OF OUR TECHNICIANS WILL ARRIVE JUST BEFORE IT OCCURS. YOU HAVE PLENTY OF TIME!’

“Turning back the clock” is a perennial fantasy, brought to life vividly in Jack Finney’s 1970 novel, “Time and Again,” and in “Back to the Future,” the memorable 1985 film starring Michael J. Fox and Christopher Lloyd.  Both of those plots involve a child’s parents meeting and falling in love, but I’m interested in having readers fantasize about world events, not personal ones.  

So, here’s the question: If you could turn back the clock, what would you change, not in your personal life but in the larger world?  Not big stuff like dropping the second A-Bomb or assassinating Hitler or Stalin, but small events that, done differently, would have had a profound impact on our lives.

No doubt some of you have already thought about having Fred Trump wear a condom!

Me, I’d somehow convince President Reagan not to do his deal with Rupert Murdoch that did away with the ‘fairness doctrine’ that required equal time on TV and radio for different points of view.  That deal has given us Fox, NewsMax, MS Now, and all the unbalanced crap that pollutes our airwaves. 

And I would have George W. Bush first read and then take seriously the FBI warnings that the ‘foreign-appearing’ men who were taking flying lessons weren’t interested in learning how to land the planes.  That probably would have prevented 911.

I’d change at least three votes in the Senate if I could. 1) I’d have Senator Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, a medical doctor, abide by his Hippocratic oath and vote against confirming Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as Secretary of Health and Human Services; and 2) I’d have Senator Joni Ernst of Iowa vote against confirming Pete Hegseth as Secretary of Defense and 3) (going back to Trump’s first term) I’d give Senator Susan Collins the courage to vote against sending to the full Senate the nomination of Betsy DeVos to be Secretary of Education.

It’s now 36 minutes later, but on Josh’s clock it’s 36 minutes earlier!! 

Alas, as Omar Kayyam wrote, 

“The Moving Finger writes, and, having writ,

Moves on: nor all thy Piety nor Wit

Shall lure it back to cancel half a Line,

Nor all thy Tears wash out a Word of it.”

While we cannot change the past, much of what will happen tomorrow is subject to our control.  So if you, like me, are unhappy with the direction that Trump is taking our country, get involved.  Support the ACLU and groups that are working to protect voting rights.  Write postcards. Donate to promising political candidates.  

The clock is ticking….