Changes

No longer the kind, gentle, elderly man...

As the meme says, I’m not accepting the things I cannot change anymore. If I find that something is so alien to my beliefs that I cannot abide it, then I won’t just complain against it, I’ll work to change those things I cannot accept in any way I can.

The first thing I’ve chosen to write about under this new direction is my political affiliation. I’ve been a republican for the majority of my life, probably 60 years or more. I always agreed with the platform and used to believe that the party did too.

I must admit that I was wrong. The republican party (and I don’t capitalize that for a reason) has fallen away from what made it great. There was a time when republicans might lose an election, but they didn’t lose their beliefs, their honor, their belief in the party platform, or doing the right thing.

Freedom is difficult without these things

Here in Arkansas, the republican party has lost all of these. Instead of a belief that each of us is born equal, the republicans here in Arkansas now subscribe to the belief in power for power’s sake. They don’t use it for good. In fact, they use it to achieve their own personal goals.

Our governor is the perfect example of an elected official who believes that her program is sacrosanct. No one knows more and no one knows better than she and her cabal. So under the present administration transparency is a lie, open government doesn’t exist, and vendettas for perceived slights are the rule.

The current iteration of republican reminds me of the stereotypical Democrat. The only difference is today’s Democrat is either radical or a drone. They’re either running around with their hair on fire, or they think their hair is on fire because one of the radicals told them it was. With the exception of the governor, who is the radical, everyone else in the republican party is a drone. And they act like it.

Never mind campaign promises, forget the platform, don’t try to force feed the drones the independent spirit that made this country great, just have plenty of money in your PAC and be ruthless in pursuing anyone who disagrees with you, whether they’re right or wrong.

Freedom Dies when Sin Rules

So I’ve left the republican party, and they’re probably dancing for joy. The party never wanted to hear they were wrong, never admitted to corruption even when presented with the receipts, and certainly didn’t want to treat elected officials as employees, which they are. They think of themselves as princes and princesses, which they’re certainly not. They are employees to whom we delegate the authority to make laws in our place. If these elected officials “represent” us, they should do our will, not theirs. This is the issue I find to be unacceptable, that employees should have the hubris to believe they’re the boss. Of course they think that because we’ve allowed it, and that being the problem leads to this solution.

Monitor how the elected officials vote or do their jobs, and how well all of them keep campaign promises. If they don’t vote in support of the majority opinion of their constituents, don’t reelect them. If the elected officials don’t fulfill campaign promises or govern as if the thought they were sovereign rather than an employee, don’t reelect them.

Push term limits. I never thought I’d endorse term limits, however, they’re needed. I always thought that the voters were all the term limit needed; if you didn’t care for a politician’s actions or voting record you just wouldn’t vote for them. Not true, as some of the worst politicians, like Chuck Schumer, Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders, AOC, or Hakeem Jeffries keep being reelected. They do this by being popular in their districts, whether it’s a state or a congressional district. Remember the old saying, he may be an SOB, but he’s our SOB! That’s how these people keep getting reelected, by keeping people happy who benefit directly by bringing home the bacon. So the people who benefit from bringing home the bacon will never vote against that politician, even if his actions damage the entire state or the country.

There also needs to be law, rules, regulations to specifically limit the ability of lobbyists to affect legislation. Make them report each and every contact they or their organizations make with elected officials or their staff. Make it illegal for the lobbyist to make any contribution directly to a political campaign with which they do business. Sort of makes sense to think that giving contributions to a campaign puts you in a place where you get to ask questions, and your desired answer gains weight according to the size of your contribution. This is corruption and needs to be ended.

Politicians must not be allowed to make a career out of politics. By limiting the time they are allowed to serve, and limiting the ability of professional opinion makers to get legislation passed, we’ll get closer each election to the ideal state – a political class that is temporary and transient, who get elected and work to fulfill the promises they made to the electorate, and then leave. Sounds good, doesn’t it?

So this is my newest “series.” I will write these articles from time to time as I find topics. If you have a topic, send a note. I’ll be happy to look at what makes you mad...

I’ll keep writing as long as you all keep on reading!