Most people want to hear the story of how a product, company or fad got started. They are interested in the details of how and why a company was launched. The average person wants to hear a “Genesis” story. A kind of from the beginning documentary or timeline.
So here it is…
Two years ago, I was helping my grandmother fill out her absentee ballot for the 2018 State of GA elections. The moment that stood out for me was when I asked her who she wanted to vote for governor, and she instantly replied, “Which one is Republican?”
Now, I need for you to understand this. I love my grandmother who cared for me and raised me from the age 5yrs old. Obviously, I have tremendous affection for her. My grandmother is kind, loving, smart, charitable and a hard worker. She possesses all of the qualities that I consider essential qualities of a decent human being.
However, a combination of biased media coverage and the psychological impact of our current political environment had scared her so badly that she was willing to blindly cast her vote for any candidate just because they had an “R” beside their name.
“Do you know any one like this?”
Please understand, I am in no way suggesting you should not vote Republican. But at the same time, am I not suggesting you should vote Democrat. I am only imploring you to vote your conscious. Please, Think for Yourself!
While I am in no way saying that you should either vote Republican or Democrat, I am asking that you take the time to know and understand the candidate of your choice.
In my humble opinion. you should at the very least understand what the candidates you are voting for stand for. Do you know what their core values are?
Do you know their past voting record, job history, and more importantly their life history? These are important factors. Especially in an election year.
I do not know if we can every truly know who we are electing to office. However, I do feel strongly we should perform our due diligence and learn all we can of a candidate prior to casting our vote.
We must do all that we can to stop empty campaign promises. We as American citizen deserve better.
In this current moment, we are in a crisis. Our country is in a crisis. The media has failed to keep us informed. Our politicians have failed to keep us informed. They have used each other to pit us against one another.
We are nothing short of pawns in service to America’s two party political system.
Consider this. Imagine a really bad divorce. The children are suffering because both parents (Republican / Democrat, CNN / Fox News, etc…..) spend most of their time trying to blame the other side.
Both parents are actively involved in fearmongering, bashing and participating in attacking the other side. It appears as if their only goal is to bring down the other side. Regardless of the consequences.
Both parties, i.e. parents, spend an inordinate amount of time to cast aspersions and slander the opposing party. How does that serve us as American citizens?
Does fearmongering really work?
When you spend all of your time blaming the countries problems on the other side, you basically have nothing good to say about your side.
I believe improvement comes from understanding your own weakness, and a willingness to work as a team to solve the problems before you.
In our current political environment, it appears as if both sides are unwilling to set aside their differences and work together for the advancement of America?
Let’s look at this for an example.
Parents are divorced, and they hate each other. They blame each other for everything that is wrong or bad.
Neither of them are willing to accept responsibility for anything that is wrong.
The power gets cut off because your dad did not give your mother any money. Your dad does not come to visit you because your mom is a “!@#$#.” Your father says he is not to blame because your mother would not let him come over. And so on and so on.
This is pretty much your life until you want a motorcycle…
Yes, you guessed it. Either mom or dad is the go-to villain and they are the one who will not let you have a motorcycle. When the truth of the matter is neither parent wants you to have a motorcycle.
Life is oh so tricky when you are stuck in the middle.
I have even witnessed angry parents purposely sabotaging their ex-spouse just so they can be the “good” adult guardian. But of course, they take every opportunity to point out how badly the other parent behaves. Bad parents often play tit for tat while their children suffer. Holding each other hostage until they get what they want.
The real victims are the neglected children who are perpetually caught between Waring parents. We see this type of behavior time and time again within our own current government.
Let’s take a moment to look at another type of manipulation used to control the masses. Fearmongering!
Fearmongering is probably the most popular dirty trick used by both political parties.
Here is an example:
- Immigration
- Side A: We are letting murders and criminals cross our borders and infiltrate our country.
- Side B: We are deporting lawfully abiding college students who were brought here, against their will, as children.
Yes, both of the above scenarios have actually happened in America. However, both political parties are guilty of using fear as a tool to control the masses and win elections.
Let’s look at an extreme example:
- Gun Violence
- Side A: Less than half of a percent (.005%) of American citizens were murdered where a fire-arm was the weapon of choice.
- Side B: Almost 500 people a week were killed in 2019 by fire-arms.
According to https://www.gunviolencearchive.org both of the above statements are true. However, they are spun in different ways in order to incite fear among the masses and thereby attract votes for their political party or preferred candidate.
“Side A” only counts deaths by fire-arms, not suicides, and then divides that number by the current U.S. population of approximately 331 million to arrive at a small percentage.
“Side B” counts all deaths by gun violence , and then divides that number by 52 weeks to arrive at their statistical number.
While both sides may be technically correct, both parties are also being disingenuous in their reporting. And, for the record. I have no idea how accurate their numbers are.
Let’s move on to another favorite political tactic of mine. The Blame Game.
- COVID-19 Funding
- Side A: We could not pass a budget because “Side B” wants a billion dollars for X, Y or Z.
- Side B: We could not pass a budget because “Side A” wants a billion dollars for X, Y or Z.
Wait a minute. I thought we were working on a budget for COVID-19. Why is X, Y or Z even brought into the equation ?
This is the point in the political process where both parties have resorted to using earmarking during budget talks.
An earmark is a provision inserted into a discretionary spending appropriations bill that directs funds to a specific recipient while circumventing the merit-based or competitive funds allocation process. *
Wait a minute. Why would we ever want to circumvent merit?
And, while we are on the subject of funding. Here are a couple of additional thoughts.
As of October 9, 2020, our elected representatives, who we trust to run our government, have effectively saddled the American citizen with more than 27 Trillion in debt. Of course, this outrageous number has been growing out of control for more than 50 years.
According to https://www.usdebtclock.org our current U.S. Gross Domestic Product is a healthy 19 Trillion + dollars. However, our Federal deficit exceeds 4 Trillion dollars.
When will this madness stop?
And…
Why are the paychecks of our elected officials protected with guaranteed payments when Congress cannot agree on a budget and lets the government shutdown for weeks at a time?
This is just another example of how the same laws are not equally applied to all U.S. citizens.
Anyway…
Let’s continue with the subject of political power plays. Capturing political prisoners and holding them hostage during negotiations is a popular gambit in Washington. Of course, these so-called hostages are metaphorical, but the damage inflicted upon the American citizen is all too real.
For example, during the course of passing a bill members of Congress may agree to certain stipulations in exchange for bi-partisan support for a future bill.
To me it seems as if this type of behavior is a byproduct of the “Good Ol’ Boy” network. You scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours.
We need a government that will work together for the betterment of society and forget about this tit for tat nonsense. Political favors appear to be commonly traded currency on Capital Hill, but I would surmise the types of “currency” traded in Congress rarely benefit the average American citizen.
And of course, the old adage “It’s my way or the highway” simply does not work either.
We need leaders that will think about the America they represent first and foremost, but also candidates that re willing to compromise to better our society.
This reminds me of a situation when I first got married.
I wanted a big dog. You know the type, a manly dog. Yes, I know that is stereotypical of men, but in my case it happens to be true. Unfortunately, my wife was afraid of dogs, especially big dogs. She wanted a cat. Now, I had lots of cats growing up and I did not want another cat. My wife and I decided to compromise, and we ended up getting a small dog. He was just a cute little puppy when we got him. He is now 15 years old and the love of our lives, especially since my wife and I decided early on not to have children.
I cannot say this is always true, but a willingness to compromise has been beneficial in my life. A lot of the time in life, it appears as if the compromise is the unexpected blessing.
And on that note, I am tired of watching the parents fight. I am ready to file for emancipation.
How do we emancipate ourselves from our current government?
By voting out the incumbents that either created the mess in the first place or allowed it to continue. Either way you are out.
We as American citizens have the power to send a clear message. If you are in office and not doing your job, then you will be fired. And good riddance!
We do not need our President to drain the swamp. We can do that at the poles.
As American citizens, it is our right and our prerogative to vote out ineffective leaders.
* Earmark – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earmark_(politics)