A Night Unremembered
13 years ago
Saturday, October 29, 2011
Got a pitchfork and a torch?
I wonder just what politicians are all about. I have mentioned that I thought that politicians were supposed to plead their cases, to tell us what they want to do, tell us what their visions are for the country (or state or county or city), and then let us decide at the ballot box whose vision is best. That was just wishful thinking on my part. It has never been that way. Politicians have always played to the audience in front of them.
When speaking to farmers, they are all country boys at heart. When speaking to city folks, they extol the virtues of big cities. In front of unions, they are pro-union. In front of businessmen, they are pro-business. But no matter what the party, no matter what the audience, they toss in a little fear of their opposition. Or a lot of fear... if they are down in the polls.
If you believe these folks, Republicans want to kill people, starve children, and throw grandma out into the street, while stealing the last penny from the poor. On the other hand, Democrats want to nationalize the few industries we have left, unionize any businesses that aren't already, and pave the way to a socialist state while taxing the heck out of anyone who can afford to put away $100 for a rainy day.
Those seem to be our choices.
People denounce politicians as liars and thieves and then shy away from a non-politician running for office. Big Business is suspect, bankers are suspect, pharmaceutical companies are suspect, insurance companies are suspect, and anyone who makes more than the median income somehow cheated his way there.
We are being lied to. And not only lied to but laughed at. Once again, I am urging you to vote against all incumbents. We need to sweep them out, to "cleanse" all of government of the career politicians. We need to replace them for at least the next three election cycles: 2012, 2014, and 2016.
This is the only thing that will actually frighten them. The only thing they actually fear is an electorate that will no longer be manipulated and ignored.
Let's remind them who is in charge.
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2 comments:
You've probably suspected by now that my political opinions differ from yours. Hopefully, that doesn't bother you too much. I just want to say that unlike many, for me socialism is not a dirty word. Most folks don't know the difference between socialism and communism, and certain politicians exploit this lack of understanding. Capitalism only worked well when the world--especially our continent-- was thought to be an inexhaustible resource. We now know this isn't true. I've lived in countries that were too socialistic and others that were too capitalistic. There needs to be a balance, but in modern politics compromise has become a dirty word. Those who don't believe in compromise don't know how this country came into being, and probably will never understand why the U.S. Capitol is in the South.
It does not bother me at all that your politics differ from mine. The only time such things bother me is when the produce, or proliferate, the political stereotypes I mentioned above. You don't seem to be doing that. The problem with socialism is that instead of spreading the wealth so that everyone is happy and healthy, it tends to spread the poverty so that everyone is miserable and poor. I am leaving out the people in power, of course, they will prosper... as will their friends and political associates. I predicted, back in the 8th grade, that the U.S. would eventually evolve into some kind of socialist-free enterprise society. At that time (1958-1959), the idea was not a popular one. And I didn't make that prediction because I favored socialism or even thought it something good. I think (and thought then) that it saps incentive which is at the heart of free enterprise and individual freedom. In spite of that, I think that is the direction we are headed and we are seeing the struggle between the two for primacy. That is all either can have, you will never stamp out either one.
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