Pundit Road

All right, just this one time I will talk about politics.  Then no more.  I don't like politics.  And I don't like what it does to people.  So, as Christopher Walken's character in Joe Dirt said, "Who asked you? Did you hear me solicit your opinion? I don't think so."  Or was it in Wayne's World 2?  Actually, it might not have even been Christopher Walken who said it.  Doesn't matter.  The point is that nobody asked me but I'm going to talk about it anyway because things have gotten out of hand, and it's time for a reality check.

ELECTION DAY

A Day When Millions Of Americans Pretend To Vote

(verydemotivational.com)



The key word is "pretend."  In the 2008 presidential election only 54% of eligible citizens actually voted.  That's pretty bad.  Maybe it has something to do with the choice of candidates.  If that's the case the turnout this year will likely be even worse.  Barack Obama or Mitt Romney.  Really?  300 million people in this country and that's the best we can do?  Neither candidate is all bad.  They both have had some things to say that I like.  Too bad those things didn't relate to the economy or world affairs.  I'm talking about some great zingers.

Obama (talking about Romney's comments during a television interview about his ideas for creating jobs):

"It was a rerun. We'd seen it before. You might as well have watched it on a black-and-white TV.  With rabbit ears. On Nick at Night."   Well, it made me laugh anyway.

Or, Romney (referring to Bill Clinton):  "I spent four years as governor.  I didn't inhale."  Burn!

I know there are zealots, kool-aid drinkers and fanatics out there who think their candidate is the only one who can fix things.  They have a blind allegiance to somebody they really don't know. There are also very sincere people who prefer one candidate or the other because they honestly believe that person can turn things around.  Personally (and I don't think they necessarily start out this way) I believe all politicians at the national level, and in some cases even at the state level, at some point become self-serving egomaniacs whose main goal is getting re-elected.  And, unfortunately for us, they forget about doing what's right and concentrate on doing what's politcally correct and expediant. 

Whenever I mention this, the usual response is "Oh not my guy! He really cares. It's not his fault we're in this mess, it's all those other people."  I hate to break it to you but if your "guy" is in ... then he's part of the problem.  My thought is that we need to throw them all out of office.  Every single elected representative should be replaced as soon as possible.  What have we got to lose?  It's so tiresome and annoying to hear each political party blame the other, while taking no accountability or accepting any responsibility for the mess we're in.  

 

American author Richard Armour got it right when he said, "Politics for all too long has been concerned with right or left instead of right or wrong."  That needs to change.  And we're the only ones who can make that change.  But it's going to take a lot of effort and dedication.  Maybe we need to follow the advice of Howard Beale (Peter Finch) in the 1976 movie Network - 

"Things have got to change. But first, you've gotta get mad!... You've got to say, 'I'm as mad as hell, and I'm not going to take this anymore!' 

Remember, these people work for us.  It's time they start doing the job we elected them to do.  Otherwise, maybe it's time they gathered up their personal items and leave the building.

                                                                             -0-