One Day to Oblivion?

Friday, December 21, 2012 marks the end of the Mayan Calendar. The World waits breathlessly to see if it means the end of the world…

I guess it does seem like the end of the world is pending these last few days and weeks. We have the fiscal cliff waiting to plunge our economy into a world-wide recession. The wealthy would see their taxes go up a few % points, the poor and the elderly would see safety net programs slashed, students and teachers would see funding decrease even further and the military budget would be thrown to the wolves. Surely the folks in Washington will come to their senses, compromise and save the day!

It might seem like the end of the world is approaching after the tragedy in Connecticut. It was horrendous. It was unthinkable…but regrettably…not so uncommon these days. We watched President Obama list the all too many mass killings by deranged people with access to assault rifles and mega clips of ammo. He read aloud the names of the dead first graders and said enough. He said we could no longer live this way. Americans began to shout, “Make it stop! No more.” Surely the folks in Washington will come to their senses and DO SOMETHING to end the madness!

Well, unfortunately our leaders are not free to act in our best interest. I know we elected them to represent us, but they are beholding to organizations like the NRA (National Rifle Association), big banks, large corporations and a guy named Grover. Grover? What to do? What to do? We the people have the vote, but others have the money and it takes money to get elected to office. Getting elected to office gives our leaders power and privilege in our society. So Washington has become this place for large egos and small, petty ideas. Will their better nature somehow prevail? Will we be saved from oblivion?

Perhaps the Mayans had the ability to time travel. Perhaps they traveled to our time and watched our politicians play their stupid partisan games. Perhaps they saw how we valued having our guns more than the safety, even the very lives of our children. Perhaps they saw the accumulation of wealth and power by the very few in our society at the expense of the rest. Perhaps they saw how we just did not get it. United we stand as a prospering nation, the envy of the world, but divided we fall into depravity and ruin. Perhaps they saw no hope for us, no potential for growth, for evolution, for change. Perhaps they only saw our greed, our lack of compassion, our egos and our need to win at all costs. Perhaps they saw how little we valued the lives of our poor, our disabled, our elderly and our struggling masses. Perhaps they saw all of this…and decided to pull the plug. They ended their calendar and left it for us to find…and wonder.

Food for THOUGHT…

It’s the Message…Stupid!

I find it very curious that when Republicans are asked about why they lost the recent Presidential election they come up with every reason under the sun but one. Oh, they didn’t embrace Hispanic voters and their issues enough or my personal favorite…it was Hurricane Sandy. The Republicans in Ohio and Florida will tell you it is because Obama was able to deliver the black votes from the inner cities (and they were thwarted in their efforts to suppress their votes?). Some Republicans even have the nerve to blame their own candidate, Willard Romney, for the loss. He wasn’t conservative enough! He was the wrong guy for the job! We should have gone with Ricky Santorum. Oh no…they could have had a V8! I say leave the man alone! He tried very hard to be that conservative you wanted. He flip flopped all over the place trying to make the Tea Party as well as the moderate, middle of the road Republicans happy. The faithful had a hard time knowing just where he stood, but damn it…he tried.

No, the one reason why the Republicans lost the Presidency to Barack Obama was their message. In my mind it was as simple as that. Their message was mean spirited and downright nasty and at times deceitful. It disparaged Hispanics, women, gays, blacks, the poor and the elderly. They viewed 47% of this country as “takers” who contribute nothing to this economy. These “takers” are lazy bums who should get off their butts and “get a job.” If you cut the entitlement programs enough or better yet… end them, the “takers” will suddenly go out and find jobs. If you defund Planned Parenthood and pass laws calling for “Personhood” of unviable fetuses, if you shut down all available abortion clinics in the state and deny contraception to women, then the need for abortions in this country will end. If you make life so miserable for illegal aliens, if you force them to show law enforcement officers their papers for any reason (including how they look walking down a street or driving a car), then they will…”self-deport.” Gays should just become straight because that is how the Bible says so! If you have to be gay, well then keep it to yourself. According to Rev. Pat Robertson, you folks are responsible for all natural disasters in this country and Haiti.

It was the message people! Get it? You might actually try being nice to people and doing things that help them next time, especially if they can vote your ass out of office. Just a thought.

Food for THOUGHT…