Over the past seven years I’ve written about many topics. Some
remain the same year after year. Recently I began thinking on topics that
appear often in public discussion. I thought I’d make a list of what is now current.
We can look back at the list and consider items that continue to beg for solutions over and over without much progress. Should be interesting.
Current event topics in 2018:
1.
Trust in government: policing missteps,
politician misdeeds, bald face lying, etc.
2.
Federal debt level; annual deficits and
cumulative total
3.
Employment data trends: up, down, stagnant?
4.
Health of economy: who’s hurting and its effect
on the rest of us
5.
Access to quality education: all levels;
affordability; effectiveness; trends going forward
6.
Access to affordable healthcare
7.
Environmental protection; global warming
8.
Global community; open trade; cultural diversity
9.
Fix our immigration and naturalization system
10.
Work toward world peace and lesser military
confrontation and buildup
Now, how long have some of these topics been around? How
persistent and resistant to solutions? Here’s my take on that question:
1.
Trust in
government is a variable over time; ups and downs are common throughout
history. American political temper, however, has been trusting in general. The push
and pull of partisan politics and the ideological struggles between
conservative, liberal, libertarian and centrist positions have atomized
political discussion. Nasty communication patterns have developed that further
polarize political discussion and manipulation.
The answer may very well be more people engaged in the actual
process of governance. Being elected to public office – any office – provides perspective
for the office holder. Once in a position with access to all the information
and the authority to take responsibility for it, brings focus to the office
holder. Things are not as clear cut as they were once thought.
2.
Federal debt,
both annual operating deficits, and the total debt accumulated, have been long-standing problems. As a percent of Gross National Product, debt has been
generally affordable, but economic downturns have often added to the debt load
and the federal purse was used to bail out the economy. The current situation
is more dire than recent periods. The upturn in deficit spending because of massive
tax cuts have added much to the national debt and promises another $1 trillion
run up this fiscal year. The problem, however, is manmade. And the motivation
for this is not yet crystal clear. Certainly, political games have been played
to earn support from corporate owners and wealthy individuals. But the real motivation
may be to force a show down between big government and small government. If true,
then the deficit is being run up to demonstrate how social programs and safety
net programs are unaffordable. The goal will be to minimize those programs or
eliminate them outright.
The resolution
is to re-establish higher tax rates on the wealthy and on corporations. That will
reduce deficits and restore balance to the economy. Besides, if we eliminated –
outright eliminated – all social programs, it wouldn’t be enough to make a dent
in the deficit and debt. For the dent to grow, massive cuts in military
spending would need enactment; that, and major tax increases on the wealthy and
corporations. The truth: social programs are a blip compared with military
spending.
So far, both of these topics have been around a long
time. Both are central to our form of governance. They are features and yet bones of contention to many. As a nation, as a people, we discuss and argue the
merits of many positions on both topics. In the end, they amount to the same
thing – trust and belief in our people, our government processes and agencies,
and the purpose and value of its workings.
One person does not hold the magic answer. No, that takes
all of us to determine.
Return here tomorrow for more on this list of current events!
July 31, 2018
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