I am posting this as a blog so that no one has to read it that's not interested in what I have to say. Click on it or don't, it's your choice. I am a Democrat.
That being said:
I've been
wanting to write something about the election ever since it finished--sort of a
"my take on. . ." Or "what we learned from. . ." thing.
One thing
I'm very glad about is that we learned that the election can't be bought by
billionaires that want to throw their money into it so that things will be run
their way.
One thing
I'm sad about is that our country is very divided.
And I'm
pretty surprised by how even the divide is in terms of numbers. Romney did not
lose by that much despite the fact that:
1. He's
Mormon (I thought that would be a much bigger factor).
2. He's
so rich that he hasn't actually had to hold a job for over 10 years.
3. The
state that he calls home and which he served as governor overwhelmingly voted
him down as president.
4. He
made a remark about 47% of the country seeing themselves as "victims"
that don't pay taxes and would never vote for him (implying that he wouldn't
coddle them, I suppose).
5. He
refused to give real details about any plans he had to do what he intended to
do and the details he did give did not add up but he refused to acknowledge the
mathematical impossibility of what he was proposing.
Why does
half the country dislike Obama so much that they think Romney would have been a
better president?
I believe
it is because of Fox News, Rush Limbaugh, Donald Trump and others who spew
misinformation and vitriol that has no basis in fact. I would challenge
Republicans to stop listening to that stuff for just a little while and see if
their view changed.
I have
said that I would really like to see Obama make more of an effort to form some
personal relationships with more moderate Republicans in order to sway them
toward getting something done in Congress. In my view, Obama has made it clear
that he will compromise, but Republicans seem to have their heels dug in and
won't budge--because of this idiot, Grover Nordquist, who had them sign a
pledge not to raise taxes. Who is this guy anyway?? He's not God, he's not America. What
has he got over you? Any pledge you sign, should not be to an ideology that is
causing us to have to borrow money from other countries instead of raising it
on our own. At the times when America
has prospered, the rich were paying more of their share in taxes. Why is this
being fought so hard now?
Oh, I
know! You think the money is all going to freeloaders, is that it?? Why don't
we take a look at the federal budget and see where the money is really going?
20%
Defense and international security assistance
20%
Social Security
21%
Medicare, Medicaid and CHIP (Children's Health Insurance Program)
13%
Safety Net Programs
6%
Interest on the National Debt
7%
Benefits for Veterans and Federal Retirees
The remaining
13% goes to an array of programs including education (2%), infrastructure (3%),
medical and scientific research (2%) and other programs.
Where is
all this wasteful spending happening?
What is
so wrong about the government passing a law to make health insurance more
affordable for more people?
If you
think that the states can do it better, then put a plan out there!! Fight over
it if you must, iron out the details, make Obamacare better. Don't just
arbitrarily dismiss it and say--we can't afford it! What we can't afford is
moving forward without some sort of comprehensive plan to get health care costs
in this country under control!
Immigration,
too! This is a country of immigrants. People still want to come here because we
have a great country! Ideas from both sides of the aisle--as well as outside
the box should be put forth until we have a plan that addresses this issue in a
pro-active way once and for all.
One more
thing--it makes me really angry when people call Democrats (me) stupid and blind
and naive because we disagree with the
way they see things. I think we need to understand that people have very
diverse viewpoints and always have and it's never stopped this country from
being great. As long as we can have civil discussions and find things we agree
on and be respectful of each other we can start moving forward again instead of
sitting in this stalemate stewing.
