Patriotism isn't measured by Profits

We’ve confused profits with patriotism. Watching the Republican debate brought this simple point home to me.  We as a nation have assumed that if it is profitable it must be good, and if it isn’t profitable it must be bad.  The media is particularly good at manipulating the news so that it is profitable to them.  By creating these people that they call “conservative” and ”liberal” they have created caricatures that don’t exist in the numbers that they are portrayed.  Both the media and the political parties have created divisive issues that tell how bad the other side is, but in reality are issues that can never be resolved:  Outlawing abortion is not going to stop it from being done.  Some research has shown that they are currently at a level that is lower than when the procedure was illegal.  Determining when the soul enters the body is the real (male) issue here.  I believe the Supreme Court recognized the only way to keep from institutionalizing religion  is by adopting the ability to survive outside the womb as the test.  Any other answer is recognizing a religious principal as governing the land.  Immigration laws already protect us from its’ adverse consequences.  It has been illegal to hire an illegal since Reagan was in office.  The states have the ability to stop welfare benefits for illegal’s: so what harm is it to this country if illegal’s are allowed to stay, (they do spend money)?  We may need to enforce the law more.  Fences have proven to be totally worthless in China and Berlin.  The troubles in Israel are partially caused by the new fence there.  Even though many living in the inner city would like to take all the guns away, I want to know how it will be accomplished? 

If we take these issues away we find that most conservatives and liberals think the country is going the wrong direction.  Having worked for a large multinational, I can say that most decisions were made without regard to the U.S..  We have given our loyalties to our employers and our political power to the special interest groups that back them up.  We have troubles with faceless and uncaring bureaucracies and tend to blame all our problems on them: The conservatives on the government and the liberals on big business.  The media is complicit in keeping us apart by publishing; lies, misinformation, and more importantly by not publishing important news.  Opinions are published in a fact like manner, and sources now include: “Some people say”.  Because the media is the recipient of all of the campaign finance funds, they are extremely vested in the current system and are unlikely to be of much help with campaign finance reform.

We as a people have to realize that one person cannot change the direction of the country.  It is a job for all of us.  As long as politicians are elected with money that comes from sources that can’t vote for them, politicians will pass laws that are not in their constituents’ best interest.