Why Ideas Matter More Than Promises in Politics...

It has been a while since I've posted anything on my blog but I return to lay my thoughts and encapsulate my beliefs in words. Some people feel politics is indifferent to their current disposition and they return the favor to their detriment. I think people have taken for granted their civic duties and inherent rights to choose the government and officials to represent their interests. But this year is different. This year is different because we are at a turning point in history; the stakes are too high and the cost are too grave to be wrong. Lives are depending on it, literally. My political science teacher once told me, about every 40 years, there will be a realignment of the paradigm which will shift the political landscape and set a new direction for the country.

40 years is a long time. 40 years ago we saw Nixon win the election, sending the Democratic party into disarray that have reverberated till this day. The Solid South went to the Republican Party and relegated the party of FDR and JFK to both coasts and the Great Lakes. Americans no longer voted for personal interests but instead chose social issues stemming from the 60's as their call to arms at the polls. As a Democrat I am still appalled by the fact that time after time people voted against their economic interests. Then when times are really bad, they turn to the Democrats to solve their problems.

People say they love Reagan, and he has somehow been deified as the savior of America. Lower taxes was always a big theme of his. But think about it for a second. Under Reagan, the deficit ballooned astronomically out of control. Why? Because tax cuts are basically loans against the government and eventually someone has to pay for it, and it will be our grandchildren who will suffer for it. We all know the American infrastructure has to be repair and maintained, but they don't want to pay any taxes for it. We should be lucky only a quarter to a third of our taxes come out of our paycheck; in most European countries its almost half. If you want crappy schools and jacked-up roads then don't pay any taxes. But then don't complain when your car gets stuck in the pothole or your kids can't read the cooking instructions on the back of a Totino's pizza box. Its that simple. Everything costs money! Maybe you should think with your pocketbooks next time you vote for a president. Know that while voting Republican you may have more money in your pocket, but your going to need that money to fix your flat tire and hire a tutor for your kids.

And people need to stop being so naive about these rebate checks that have coming in the mail. There as worthless as the American dollar right now. So I recently got my six hundred dollar check from Uncle Sam. Big Whoopee!!! I just used that money to pay off the ridiculous gas charges on my credit card. People are so easily gratified with immediate relief that they can't see a month down the road- which is basically where they're back to after the check is gone. If only people can see a year or two years down the line, they will know this country is in deep doo-doo. And instead to finding a way around the problem, they continue to dig their way out of a hole the size of Alaska. Drilling for more oil is not a long term solution like putting more guns is not a way to decrease the rate of homicide in this country.

What I dislike about the Republicans is how simplistic and thoughtless their solutions are. Is it because they think Americans are too dumb to use reason their way around problems? It could be, and I'm really beginning to think that - Americans are dumb. Not dumb intellectually but in having the common sense to understand the nuances of issues and how they affect the nation as a whole. Maybe a better word is "lazy". They listen to sound bites and agree to everything politicians say. Both McCain and Obama are panderers; and I don't blame them because people are so selfish that if they don't get their tax cuts then they automatically assume that candidate must be for tax increases. Could it be that there is no money to give back with so many things going on, like, oh I don't know, a war? We are borrowing future money to fund this war and you want a tax break? Not only is that selfishness and stupidity at its finest, but extremely dangerous to the well-being and stability of the country. Did I also mention that its un-American?


Ideas matter! Ideas matter because after the pandering and photo-ops, the candidates who wins will return back to work regardless. And with free reign for four years and other members of their party to please, they will do what is in there best interest. So know what the Democratic party represent and what progressivism has done for this nation; from Roosevelt to JFK to Bill Clinton. Is that that the party you want in turbulent times? Or do you want the party of the Big Deficits and multiple recessions? Do you really like George Bush? There are reasons for belonging to an organization. If you're part of the NRA then you probably favor guns. If you're part of MoveOn.org you probably hate Bush. People in a collective usually share the same ideas and principles; thats just the way it is. So now the big question is, are you going to extend Bush for a third term? And don't delude yourself and say he's not the same. If it smells like a duck and it quacks like duck, its probably a duck.