If you read my prior two posts, you can probably guess where I stand on this issue. The problem isn't Wall Street. It isn't the banks. It isn't even the wealthiest 1% (I'll have another post on this specific topic later this week).
The problem is Washington - and, oddly, I don't mean Obama.
Washington has completely lost touch with America...though I don't think this is new, it's just worse. Remember the late 1980's when Barbara Bush, then FLOTUS, visited a grocery store and was amazed at the scanning technology used at the checkout line? Yeah, politicians have been out of touch for a while.
But today, it's worse. Today we have Democrats still operating under the assumption that Americans not only want but need government protection from themselves. That if the government wasn't planning our retirement for us, telling us what we should eat, or paying for our health care that we would all be aimlessly roaming the streets. We have Republicans still operating under the assumption that Protestant Christianity represents the majority of America, that regulation is unnecessary (unless the toxic waste dump is next to their property), and we need the government's help to protect our children from outside influence. They're both wrong.
The reason they are so out of touch is Congress doesn't live in the real world. They live in Washington. And we never force them to live in the real world because we keep electing the same people back to office! We're all guilty of it: "It's not MY politician that's the problem, it's everyone else!"
When you lose touch with the average American, you can no longer represent them. When your salary is guaranteed for life, even if you stop working, how can you pass labor laws for the average worker? If your retirement plan is fully funded by the government and doesn't require you to pay into it, how can you reform social security? If your health care plan covers everything, with no copay, and never questions if you needed that surgery to enhance your wife's breasts, how can you contribute to a discussion seeking a solution to control rising costs of health care?
After electing FDR to his fourth presidency, the American public realized long-term government servitude is not right for our country. How is it, more than 80 years later, we have not come to the same realization with Congress?
It is time we did. In the absence of a Constitutional Amendment limiting all Congressman to 12 years of service in either house, it is up to us as voters to do the job. Vote out the incumbents, even if you are crossing party lines to do so.
Vote for someone else. If you have two choices on the ballot, and one is an incumbent, and the other is a convicted axe-murderer, vote for the felon - at least he's had the chance to reflect on his crimes.
We shouldn't be occupying Wall Street. We should be occupying Pennsylvania Avenue.
The problem is Washington - and, oddly, I don't mean Obama.
Washington has completely lost touch with America...though I don't think this is new, it's just worse. Remember the late 1980's when Barbara Bush, then FLOTUS, visited a grocery store and was amazed at the scanning technology used at the checkout line? Yeah, politicians have been out of touch for a while.
But today, it's worse. Today we have Democrats still operating under the assumption that Americans not only want but need government protection from themselves. That if the government wasn't planning our retirement for us, telling us what we should eat, or paying for our health care that we would all be aimlessly roaming the streets. We have Republicans still operating under the assumption that Protestant Christianity represents the majority of America, that regulation is unnecessary (unless the toxic waste dump is next to their property), and we need the government's help to protect our children from outside influence. They're both wrong.
The reason they are so out of touch is Congress doesn't live in the real world. They live in Washington. And we never force them to live in the real world because we keep electing the same people back to office! We're all guilty of it: "It's not MY politician that's the problem, it's everyone else!"
When you lose touch with the average American, you can no longer represent them. When your salary is guaranteed for life, even if you stop working, how can you pass labor laws for the average worker? If your retirement plan is fully funded by the government and doesn't require you to pay into it, how can you reform social security? If your health care plan covers everything, with no copay, and never questions if you needed that surgery to enhance your wife's breasts, how can you contribute to a discussion seeking a solution to control rising costs of health care?
After electing FDR to his fourth presidency, the American public realized long-term government servitude is not right for our country. How is it, more than 80 years later, we have not come to the same realization with Congress?
It is time we did. In the absence of a Constitutional Amendment limiting all Congressman to 12 years of service in either house, it is up to us as voters to do the job. Vote out the incumbents, even if you are crossing party lines to do so.
Vote for someone else. If you have two choices on the ballot, and one is an incumbent, and the other is a convicted axe-murderer, vote for the felon - at least he's had the chance to reflect on his crimes.
We shouldn't be occupying Wall Street. We should be occupying Pennsylvania Avenue.
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