America: The Clash of Politics and a National Identity

The recent election this November has swept the republicans back into power in the House of Representatives. I'm not sure that they've been given free rein by the public. They're being sent out on a test drive. If Americans like the ride, and the quality of work they'll more than likely hold legislative power in 2012. We need to set politics aside and avoid the endless arguments that divide republicans from democrats and liberals from conservatives and look at the real underlying issues. I believe that for many of us, President Obama's policies and the heavy handed legislative maneuvers of Nancy Pelosi's Congress have left us wondering just what our national identity has historically been and what we want it to become. Ageless questions regarding our republic have simmered to the surface. Thoughts such as: How do we view our nation's past? How do we view the United States in its relation to the world? Do we want equality of condition or equality of opportunity? Do we want an expansive or a limited federal government? Do individuals look at outside influences rather than internally when analyzing their own success or lack thereof?

Many of us are concerned about our national debt. Some of us waste time blaming this or that party or a specific politician. Both parties have operated our government via deficit spending. If a family or a business is to reap the benefits of success, they must operate in the black. Why shouldn't our government be held to the same standard? Many of us have suckled for too long at the government tit of entitlement. Far too many of us also believe that it is the government's role to provide us with an equality of existence rather than an equality of opportunity. Life is tough and there are no guarantees. Government's only responsibility is to do its very best to level the playing field and then stand back and allow personal endeavor and endless fortitude on an individual level to play out. We are not all equal in drive or temperament so, how can government possibly make us equal? All one needs to do is look at a current world map and juxtapose it with a map from the 1980s. The last century's great experiment in socialism was an abysmal failure. The Soviet Union and the socialistic governments in the Warsaw Pact are now defunct. These governments operated in the red and tried to mandate social equality which resulted in the stifling of personal endeavor and socio-political doldrums.

Each of us is the captain of our own ship and therefore responsible for steering it into safe or into dangerous waters. Therein lies the question; where do we draw the line separating personal responsibility from government subsistence? Unfortunately, many families have over extended their fiduciary resources and have fallen into bankruptcy. Many of these very same families are looking to place the blame for their lot on others. No politician or a political party has held a gun to any citizen's head and mandated that they go into debt. It is the responsibility of each of us to live within our means. No one doubts that there are families in need who are suffering from consequences outside of their control and that they deserve a helping hand to bail the water out of their boat but; there are also many amongst us who have spent like drunken sailors with money that they didn't have and are now looking for free handouts. There is a real life lesson to be learned in our current recession. Each of us rises or falls by our own due diligence. We cannot nor should we expect the government to rescue us from our own bad decisions. Doing so will ensure that you never learn from your mistakes. Life decisions are full of unforeseen consequences and how we deal with these bumps in the road establishes our identity. Individualism is a distinctive American trait and with it comes responsibility. Our Bill of Rights protects the rights of the individual but it is the responsibility of the individual to reach for the heights that only he or she can identify. All of us need to do a whole lot less finger pointing and spend more time conducting a self analysis of our situation. Doing so will be constructive on both an individual and a national level.

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Post Election 2010 Viewpoint

We're finally freed from incessant political advertisements and the landscape in Washington D.C. will change this January. We all know that the Republicans will take control of the House while the Democrats have retained control of the Senate. So, what will the new power structure in our nation's capitol mean for all of us? Some pundits have stated that both sides will have to start working together. Others say that the influence of the Tea Party will force the Republicans to remain combative with the executive branch. None of us know for certain just what will transpire but it is sure to be interesting.

The way I see it, we're looking at relative gridlock for the next two years. Why? This president and the remaining members of Congress from the democratic party are far left of center. If you listened closely to the comments of Majority Leader Reid, Speaker Pelosi, and President Obama, none of them seemed to think that they had over reached in their endeavors to institute their value system on America. Obviously, it would be difficult for anyone to easily come to terms with their massive defeat last Tuesday nor can one expect them to capitulate on their value system but one should expect them to realize that they had misread their proxy from the American public. On the other hand, the Republicans should not assume that they've been given an open ended vote of confidence from the electorate. Americans are a fickle bunch and the GOP is on a short leash.

The way I see it, the voting public wants jobs, jobs, and more jobs. We aren't buying into the new health care legislation, and we're worried about deficit spending. These are the issues that swept so many members of the GOP into office. We're also tired of our nation's power brokers being apologetic for our nation's turbulent history. While we might have warts, we're a proud people who have always found a way to correct our country's mistakes. Does this mean that we're better than other countries? Of course not but, we shouldn't engage in self humiliation either.

So, I have no great hope that much will get done in the next two years and once again, the public will have to make a choice in 2012. Nobody knows what will transpire until then but President Obama most assuredly has his work cut out for him. Will he move to the center? Doubtful. He really believes that his views are centrist in nature. As a creature of academia, he has led an insulated life. Academics exist in the relatively protected world of hypothesis. It is not until you venture out into the muck of reality and get dirty that you put your world view to the test. Unfortunately for us, our president is experiencing this while on the job. Gridlock is what is coming but you needn't fear it. Our two parties have seldom worked together and we shouldn't expect it now. Gridlock leads to checks and balances and these prevent either philosophical viewpoint from completely dominating our landscape. Most of us live somewhere along the fence-line that separates the left and the right and we don't like it when we're forcibly moved in either direction from the middle. The next two years are sure to be an exciting ride!

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