Common Cause

Our nation is one of the people, by the people, and for the people. We get to decide what it is we want in our lives, from our lives, and because of our lives. The government doesn’t decide this; we do.

Some of our fellow citizens seem to think that this gives them freedom to impose their values and thinking on the rest of us. No. They are wrong.

Democracy provides for open discussion leading to decisions by elected representatives. They make the decisions that govern our lives together. They do this after taking a good reading of what it is we want made public in our discussions, press offerings, and public media sharing of opinions of we the people.

Should those elected representatives get it wrong, they are to be removed at the next election. Pretty simple remedy. It takes our patience and forbearance, but it eventually gets done.

Meddling by these elected officials and their staff sometimes allow continuance in office through gerrymandered electoral districts and other nonsensical protocols passed off as ‘rules and regulations.’ But in time they will be found out and removed from office.

Failing that, I guess we have to impose term limits. That is our trump card (no pun intended). I don’t support term limits in the main, but in the final analysis it may be the only way to get elected representatives to do their jobs correctly.

If elected reps feel that the public has it wrong, then they should not vote contrary to the public’s view. Instead they should extend every effort to inform and educate the public where they think they have it wrong.

In this manner reps will not be allowed to make economic policy using the wrong theories and unproven methods. Macro Economics is what they should be using when fiddling with this arena of governance, not Micro Economics. Shame on them for this basic ignorance.

And ideology. It can and should be discussed, but it should not be overlaid as the final element in making decisions. We need to move beyond the ideology that angers and frustrates governance. We are in gridlock because of this. We cannot afford anymore gridlock in the federal OR state governments.

Seek definition of what the final outcomes should be in the many arenas of public life. Pick the most important arenas, settle on the outcomes as goal, and move forward to find the best ‘how’ to make it happen over time. Stop arguing about the things that don’t matter. Argue over what we ought to be determining as goals. Then take action.

We have made our democracy a sham. It is time to correct this situation.

Get on with it Congress. Get on with it Illinois Legislature. Otherwise you are all numbskulls playacting at meaningless activity.

How do you spell fool?  G R I D L O C K.

Thank you.

June 30, 2017