2016 And America

Firstly I will make no prediction. But I do want to make a statement.

America, the land of the free, the home of the brave is at a crossroads. We have been here before. We have an opportunity to choose our future and we have an opportunity to make our government stand up and notice us. And there is only one way we can do this.

Firstly, government is wasteful. But it is mostly wasteful of time, not taxpayer money. Some would have you believe it's the latter and not the former. But there are a few things to remember:

Any time a politician holds a press conference, that politician is not doing anything. It's a waste of time and it is an attempt to call attention to herself or himself. Frequently, it's an attempt to call attention to how good that politician is because of what they have done. But what they are doing in that moment is having a press conference, which does nothing. So, when they all trot out and address cameras, they are wasting time.

To insist that government be less wasteful is foolish. This simply will never happen. Complaining that government is wasteful is usually done in a press conference, which is—itself—wasteful.

We can decide for the collective good, or we can serve those who prefer that we do not organize for our own benefit. What I mean by this is that you, the reader, are certainly not in the top 1%. The top 1% doesn't read my blog. They don't read blogs. They have "people" to do that for them. Here is what the collective good is: Something that serves the largest majority of us in the United States and that is the Middle Class.

Since the Middle Classes pay most of the taxes in any nation, they should be corrective, in nature, urging moderation in our government. Instead, though, our government has been taken over by radicals of all sides who insist on non-government. What is non-government? It is refusal to compromise.

Here is how compromise works: I want my roads to be straight. You want your forest and you want it intact. If we refuse to compromise, your forest remains under threat and my road does not get built. If we compromise, you get most of your forest and I get my road with a curve that is not too bad. But with no government, you get no result. So, when we are voting, we need to vote on members of Congress and a President who will compromise. Electing a politician who proudly says I won't compromise means you get no government, as nothing happens.

So, as you listen to the candidates, think about how they are talking about an appropriate compromise. If you choose to vote for them and they have told you they will never compromise on certain issues or on anything, then you are voting for no government. There will be no positive change during a government of no-compromise.

Listen to their speeches in their entireties, not just the soundbites that are endlessly played on the news channels or the evening news shows. Ask yourself how much is this person ready co compromise, to work for me and to expand the middle class? Listen to the debates—and realize that winning is not everything. Ask yourself how this person will help your life get better, personally.

As to recent history, I offer praise to our current President. He has overseen us stepping back from what would have been a second Great Depression. Stock market recovered all losses. Unemployment is as low as it was in 2001. Not everything is rosy, but we are better off then we were 7 years ago.