It’s becoming more and more obvious to me that the
terrorists have won their game. The
object of most terrorists is to take down a government. Ours hasn’t been a functioning democracy for
some time. Both political parties are so
wrapped up in building and maintaining their power that they have forgotten
what power is supposed to be used for.
Small groups of activists in power in each party are convinced that a
divide and conquer strategy is the best one to use. By spreading fear, hate, anger and blame to the other party they
think they can consolidate their power.
I haven’t voted for a candidate for a long time and I bet you haven’t
either. We vote against the candidate we
think will do the most harm. We have
equated money with power and believe you need one to get the other. We have stopped listening to the “horse’s
mouth” and instead listen to the pundits misinterpretation of what was said. Instead of discussing ideas, we bad mouth
people. One group blindly agrees with
what they are told to believe and another group thinks they know what is right for
everyone and that everyone should agree with them without discussion. We are
told to see things as good or evil with no in-between. We are led to believe that all relationships
fall in the category of winner or loser and the thought that a transaction
could benefit both sides and even result in synergy is not a possibility. We are taught to believe that if the other
party gets its’ way, the country as we know it will implode.
As an old white man who wears a feed hat, I am tired as
being portrayed as a racist, and I am sure that black people are more tired at
being told their lives don’t matter.
When Archie Bunker came on the scene we all thought it was funny when he
said things that people thought but didn’t say out loud. Now it seems people
just want to say the most outrageous things they can to be noticed. People rant
against “political correctness” when it is really just being polite. We used to be taught that “if you can’t say
something good about someone, don’t say anything at all”.
The media has found that using outrageous headlines is what
garners them the most attention and money and have turned to using opinions as
headlines. We are left not knowing what
to believe as we are told that truth has two sides now. Even the most reputational media provides
opinions when they decide to report only the bad things, (or good) that a
politician does. With all the cacophony
going on I would suggest that no one knows what the country wants, and anyone
that says they do is only pushing their own agenda. We no longer provide any importance to a
politicians’ integrity and many even think the best liar makes the best
politician. This championing of mistrust
is perhaps the most harmful aspect of our current climate as all business and
politics require trust for anything good to happen. It’s gotten to the point that when I hear one
party accusing the other of distasteful actions, I know that the accusing party
has already taken part in those same actions.
The names politicians give their bills always seem to describe what the
bill will not do.
The phony stories about
entitlements, income redistribution and takers really gets my craw. I am entitled to many benefits because I have
paid for them! Income redistribution is
seen as awful when the rich are to give to the poor, but the recent past shows
the largest income redistribution in over a hundred years going from the poor
to the rich. Being accused of being a
taker when the accusers are usually promoting tax cuts is the largest
folly. When one politician gets taxes
cut, politicians in other governmental units end up raising taxes in order to
keep the services that government provides.
I would suggest that the tax cutters are the biggest takers in the way
they pass on larger and larger debt to future generations while continuing to
spend. It’s the same story I heard in corporate life: We get some good benefit
now, and when the it hits the fan it won’t be on my watch!
As long as we let the drug, finance, insurance and other fat
cats finance our electoral system we will see no change. It is in their interest to keep everything as
it is. Lawmakers have made it illegal
for Medicare to negotiate drug prices while we are flooded with opiates, Bankers can continue to rip off their clients
without facing jail, and the Federal government will continue to subsidize
health insurance premiums. Meanwhile all
our Congress people stay the same, arguing that government is either the only problem
or the solution to all our problems. Voters
have to realize that when you elect clowns you end up with a circus. We must unite to prosper.
