Dissonance

The topic today is about reality and ideology. I have a few select quotes to present then I will make comments.

The first is from Warren Buffet, an Omaha, Nebraska hero of mine. Very wealthy in terms of money and asset value but even more wealthy in outlook, perspective, values. Here’s a taste:

“The rich are always going to say that, you know, just give us the money and we’ll go out and spend more and then it will all trickle down to the rest of you. But that has not worked in the last 10 years, and I hope the American public is catching on.”  ~Warren Buffet

The second  is from www.StoryofAmerica.org which shared this quote the other day:

“Let us be clear about our choice. When we raise taxes on the wealthiest Americans, no one dies. When we cut Social Security and Medicare, people die.”         ~Annabel Park

The third is from Occupy Democracy:

“When is the last time in our country we created millions of jobs? It was under Ronald Reagan.”  ~Sen.Rand Paul, 4/12/2014

“President Bill Clinton created 23 million jobs. Reagan created only 16 million.”

The fourth quote is from President Obama:

“Republican obstruction is not just some abstract political stunt. It has real and direct consequences for middle-class families all across the country.”

The fifth is from an unknown internet source:

            “Why America is severely broken:

Alice Walton is worth $21 billion dollars, while almost half of the employees at her family’s Walmart Stores are eligible for Food Stamps. American tax payers are expected to make up what she would have paid in taxes because she’s a ‘job creator’. American taxpayers are also expected to pay for her employees Food Stamps because the jobs she creates won’t pay enough to get by. Is it really so much to ask the ‘job creators’ in the USA to try and get by on a few billion dollars less so that American tax payers don’t have to foot the bill for their employees’ Food Stamps?”

I have more of this material. It pours in every day. You see it too. Perhaps you are tired of reading about it? Maybe you don’t even agree with it? Perhaps you don’t believe it?

I believe it because I am living it. I paid taxes all my life. I engaged in business, church and charities all my life. I supported my family, my kids’ education, and my ex wife’s retirement. But I’m barely making it. While republicans think I should be able to earn more income, they forget that few are hiring 71 year old people. They also forget I paid for the benefits I’m receiving. They also overlook the volunteer efforts I invest in my community and the future of our country. I don’t feel like a burden to anyone. But I’m labeled as such.

I’ll have more to say about this topic, but until we Americans understand that we are all one and the same, we cannot afford to let politicians play us against each other so they have power, money and influence. It is all directed toward them, not you and me.

The nation has problems, big ones. The politicians were elected to manage those problems and fix them. Yet here we are many years later still letting them talk a good game without the accomplishments we need as a people.

I’m sick of it. I hope you are as well. Next time ask them what they did for you and the nation before you give them your vote. Maybe after the elections of 2014 and 2016 we can finally get back to doing what needs to be done. I won’t tell you how to vote. You can decide for yourself. But for heavens sake be an informed voter.

August 21, 2014