Monday, November 15, 2004
We'll just call it a political split
...with no clear winner. Yep, we could go on forever debating the merits of politics and politicians, but I think we'll have to agree to disagree on this one. Of one thing you can be sure, and that is the political pendulum in this country is constantly swinging. It's pulled pretty far to the right at the moment -- may still be heading that way. It has been far to the left at other times and will undoubtedly head that direction again. The Founding Fathers were wise men when they wrote the Constitution. They didn't get it perfect, but it's better than what most of the rest of the world has. I think we're too hung up on labels these days -- Dems, Reps, whatevers -- and miss the fact that most of the "mainstream" politicians are pretty much white bread. They come at the status quo from different angles, but it's still status quo. You'd need more than a Ralph Nader or a Ross Perot to really shake things up, because our system of government doesn't make it easy. Checks and balances, you know.
The Democrats as a party on a national level are in a shambles right now. There's no getting around that. The Republicans have known shambles for a lot longer (in recent history). In California they are still in a shambles. Look at how soundly Barbara Boxer thumped Bill Jones in the Senate race. Jones was a weak candidate who ran a lousy campaign, but I don't hear him screaming about how Boxer stole the election or rigged the voting machines. We've been hearing that a lot from the Kerry backers the past two weeks. What frosts me is the whining and conspiracy theories (on both sides) that you routinely hear now. It overshadows the truth of our political system, which is that it works. And I do trust in the voters, even when my candidates lose. Nixon wasn't a great person, regardless of his politics. His legacy endures 30 years later in that we've lost trust in our leaders to do the right thing, and I think that's sad. Even for Clinton's personal flaws, I think he still had the good of the country at heart -- as he envisioned it. Same for the two Bushes, Reagan, Carter and Ford. I'm afraid that I don't buy into the conspiracies that administrations are basically corrupt and occasionally do good. If that were true, our government would have collapsed long ago.
I also don't give my praise of GWB lightly. He had to earn my vote in 2000, when I nearly voted for Gore. My decision to defect from the Dems came after that election as a direct result of all the hanky panky with the courts and the allegations of voter fraud, which have never been proven. The disgruntled Dems talked about how voters had been disenfranchised, when they failed to consider there were voters for the other side who stood to be disenfranchised as well if the election results were unjustly overturned. And for the past four years all we've heard is "Bush stole the election," "Bush is stupid," "Bush knew about 9/11 before it happened," "Bush is a warmonger," "Bush invaded Iraq for oil..." I paid $2.25 a gallon for gas last week, show me the freaking cheap oil that was supposed to flow like water out of Iraq! These folks need to get a life and stop dwelling on conspiracy theories. Until the Dems face the harsh reality that their current message is being rejected by the electorate they won't regain power. But the party as a whole isn't stupid. Eventually someone worth their salt will "get it" and step forward to take the reins. When that day comes, I will take a serious look at them again, but not until then.
I'm tired of writing these screeds, too. Can we go back to football?
Glenn 8-D 9:02:00 PM
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