How the GOP Operates Our Government - No Trash Pickup, No Electricity, But Only Lies & Deceit

How well do you think the GOP is operating our different forms of government (local, state, & federal) on a scale from 1 to 10 with 1 being poor and 10 being awesome?

Let me help you with that answer with irrefutable data.  

In my town, Jacksonville, my city has not picked up recycling in 4 months.  In my state, FLA, my governor ignores science, which has led to above the median deaths per 1MM people.  Nationally, the GOP has told lies to undermine the integrity of the election system and both members and supporters of the party led an actual assault on our Capital trying to overturn a legit presidential election. 

So, how well do you think the GOP is operating our different forms of government (local, state, & federal) on a scale from 1 to 10 with 1 being poor and 10 being awesome?

Here are a couple of other data points to assist you in answering that question.  Last year during a big freeze that hit most of the country the Texas power grid froze and was frozen for 3 days, if I recall correctly.  And talking about Covid, those states that lead the rate of death per capita are primarily controlled by the GOP.

In summary, the GOP cannot pick up trash, cannot keep the lights on, yet they can tell a lie about as wide as a country mile.  I give them a big fat zer0.

Save Donald John Trump or Save Your Soul

The following is the text of the email I sent to Senator Rubio in response to his email pertaining to the Impeachment trial:

Senator Rubio:

Thank you for your letter. It is good to see that in print you take your oath seriously. What matters is that your actions follow.

DJT has stated that he is the “chosen one.” It seems by words and deeds most elected Republicans believe the same.

The impeachment charges are dire.

If indeed DJT is the chosen one then truth is his salvation that can only be determined by ALL the relevant facts. Ignoring and blocking discovery of ALL facts most mean that those that do so believe he is guilty, which will not only taint his reputation, but that of the Grand Ole Party and those that allowed it to happen.

Moreover, I believe those that tout themselves as Christians would want to ensure that the “chosen one” is soundly vindicated. If they can not do that then I contend that DJT is not the chosen one and these believers have violated the 1st Commandment, "Thou shalt have no other gods before me.”

Save DJT or save your soul.  Your choice.

Republicans, The Enemy Of The State

Only now, after the debacle in Helsinki, are some Republicans pushing back against Donald J Trump (DJT), but I believe it is too little and too late. John Kasich, Ohio’s Governor, has been the ONLY Republican on the national level to consistently point out the challenges that DJT has created for our country. I view him as a party of one.  He should leave the GOP and start his own, preferably called The Freedom and Responsibility Party because we cannot have one without the other.

Before I proceed I need to point out one thing.  I did not vote for DJT nor did I vote for Hillary Clinton.  I voted for the person I believe that was more qualified to lead our country than anyone else listed on the ballot; I wrote my name in.  Some of you might say that my vote was wasted.  I say, no.  As I saw it then and still today, if the train of DJT did not hit us then the bullet of Hillary Clinton would, both equally bad. DJT became president because people voted AGAINST Hillary hoping for the best.

I can live with people hoping for the best by seeking to shake things up when encountered with two equally disastrous choices.  What I cannot live with are enablers and boot licking sycophants’, which is how I view the Republican Party ex-John Kasich.

There are so many problems with DJT, but the biggest is trust.  He has not earned mine and I think he has not earned that of the majority of Americans for the simple fact that he lies on a repeated basis. I could go on with a laundry list of grievances, but it is immaterial.  With out trust, he cannot lead and with out a leader we are sitting ducks.  The Republicans ex-John Kasich have placed their allegiance to the Party ahead of their allegiance to the country by failing to hold DJT accountable for his actions, but instead support and defend his actions.

Consequently, the Republican Party is not fit to lead.  This November, I encourage you to vote for a third Party or Democratic candidate.

Corrine Brown Has Her Day In Court

I have a friend, shocking as it may seem, who once told me that politicians should be limited to two terms, one in office and one in jail.  I could not agree more, especially so, as it pertains to my former opponent, Corrine Brown. 

Ms Brown has been charged with 22 counts attributed to fraud, obstruction and filing false tax returns.   We all await the results of the jury deliberations.  Regardless of the verdict, the case illustrates two sad facts, which are:

1. It is hard to break free from crime and 
2. We should expect more from our elected officials, not less as referenced by the aforementioned joke.

In reference to the former stated fact, Ms. Brown, grew up in area known in Jacksonville, FL as the “Northside”, which is an euphemism, code, whatever you want to call it, to paint a  picture that depicts the lives of the residents living in this geographic area as challenging due to a myriad of causes.  The main cause and effect is poverty followed by low literacy rates and higher crime rates that further perpetuates the situation.  Arguably, residents of this community know at least one and possibly many fellow residents that have been affected by crime, whether as a victim or as perpetrator. As a side note, I met many on the campaign trail eight years ago. Regardless, I believe this knowledge of crime and its effects within this community leads to understanding, which leads to tacit acceptance of (& a blind eye to) criminal behavior that I further believe begins in childhood.  Ms. Brown through hard work seemed to have broken free from this cycle of crime, but sadly, she fell back in, which proves the old adage, “you can take a [girl] out of the country, but you cannot take the country out of the [girl].”

In reference to the latter stated fact, I recently saw results of a Gallup survey that showed that the majority of people believe that politicians are corrupt.  Using the same logic in my former argument, if people believe that politicians are corrupt then I contend that these same people expect this behavior whether they acknowledge it or not, which I further contend is tacit acceptance and therefore, it becomes reality as exemplified by the situation in which Corrine Brown finds herself.  I find that unacceptable and so should everyone else.  Moreover, I believe our elected officials should be held accountable for their behavior to at least the same level as ordinary citizens because they are role models. Without the rule of law, anarchy can occur, which is not good for anybody.

Our legacy is what we leave behind when we die is it not? Should we not seek to improve the lives of future generations so that our spirit continues long after we are gone?  Should not every successive generation be the greatest generation? It comes down to what we value is it not?  I value a lot of things such as truth and honest, but germane to this situation, I value the rule of law when someone fails to be honest and commits a crime, how about you?  Hopefully, the jury will see the facts as I see them to convict Corrine Brown on some if not all counts.

Unpack The Tent! - At least for now

We wake to find that the Republican tent has been unpack and spread open for all to come in.  Their victories yesterday say more about the Democrats' failings rather than the Republican successes.

One thing the Republicans did do correctly was avoid shooting themselves in the foot this time around.  Joe Biden could learn a thing or two from them after his ill-timed comments pertaining to the Kansas senatorial election yesterday; he should have waited a day. Secondly, last night's victories should give some hope to the Republicans that they can cross racial lines and overcome perceived misogynist positions with the elections of Tim Scott in South Carolina, Mia Love in Utah and Joni Ernst in Iowa.

For these successes to continue and not be one-offs then I believe the Republicans need to focus on the basics, such as improving the economy, shrinking government and most importantly, enabling and helping people take responsibility for their own success.  If they do then it is possible that I was mistaken two years ago when I suggested we help them pack the tent.  However, I still have reason to believe that I am correct for the following reason: People do not involve themselves much in the political process, which leaves a void that is subsequently filled by well-funded interests that do not necessarily align with the founding fathers' principles.

We Need You

Given the size of our U.S. Federal government, I wonder as others may what role our government should have in our lives.  Per the U.S. Constitution it was determined at the time that the role should be "to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence (sic), promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity..." 

Obviously, the role of government has expanded over time since the Constitution was written. Arguably, the role of government today is vastly different than what the framers intended. I attribute this outcome to human behavior, which I think the framers of the Constitution did not fully comprehend and or understand.

As I stated before, humans are greedy, impatient and lazy and have been many, many millennium. In this particular situation these traits have led to a vast majority participating only on the first Tuesday of November every other year (because we are arguably lazy).  As a consequence of this behavior, I argue that very few participate, which is not good and has led to the current state of affairs.

As Thomas Jefferson noted, “We in America do not have government by the majority. We have government by the majority who participate.” As I see it, those that participate most effectively are those that can afford the lobbyists that have the face-time with their (I mean, our) representatives. Therefore, if we do not like our government then we need to participate --- almost daily---to bring this beast of a government to heel.  We must remind the office holders that they are not owners, but agents; that we are aware of their actions, just as a store owner watches the register and hired staff. 

The only politician that we can most likely trust is the one that we the individual helped elect through sweat equity, not the one with the most donations.  We need citizen candidates/elected representatives, not a life-long career politician that rose up through the ranks (from local to state to federal) as they would in a corporation.

It took years to find ourselves in this mess.  Correspondingly, it will take years to solve. It also requires us working together, but to do so means, we need you to participate more than just the first Tuesday in the month of November every other year. We need you.

Time to Pack the Tent

President Obama was re-elected for another term in office. Fortunately, there are term limits for presidents; too bad there are none for those in Congress, which I plan to rectify, but that is for another day.

The result of this presidential election does not surprise me. While I think the American populace is frustrated with our Federal government and the President’s leadership, obviously a clear majority could not bring themselves to vote for a person arguably without any convictions (beyond their own religious beliefs) and who represents a political party (i.e. The Republican Party) that has arguably lost touch with the majority of people due to policy positions resulting from extremists pushing the moderates/pragmatics from the  Republican ‘tent’ to the detriment of the party and our country.  Not saying I am moderate and or pragmatic, I left the party a little less than two years ago.

Unless things change within its leadership, I believe the Republican Party will go the way of the dodo bird. While the party could change to attract more women and minorities, I believe it will be excruciatingly painful and in the process allow the Democratic Party to grow the government even more. Personally, I do not want to wait nor see a larger federal government; therefore, I seek to hasten the process of packing the Republican ‘tent’, which is why I voted for Gary Johnson and encouraged others to do the same - I probably had the only Gary Johnson yard sign in my county.

While that tent is being pack another party will fill its void.  The Tea Party started to feel the void, but the same extremists that pushed out the moderates/pragmatics out of the Republican tent usurped the Tea Party movement.  While personally I would like to see the rise of the Freedom and Responsibility Party (my idea because you cannot have one without the other) it will most likely be the Libertarian Party that has the best chance.

Sooner the  Republican ‘tent’ is packed and another party (based on a few sound principles) fills the void sooner we can rectify the challenges we encounter.  I ask that you help me pack the tent by supporting a candidate that best suits your beliefs regardless of party affiliation. If you cannot find a candidate then I encourage you to become the candidate.

Human Nature Necessitates Term Limits

A friend of mine recently brought to my attention a news article that highlights Citizen's Alliance for Pennsylvania (CAP) reasons, efforts and challenges as it seeks to instate term limits in Pennsylvania. The names, dates and places mentioned in the article could easily be changed to describe our Federal government.

While I find the article very informative, it fails to mention what I consider the raison d’être, which I believe is human nature. As I have previously pointed out, all humans (me, you, everyone) are inherently greedy, impatient and lazy.  These traits have led to marvelous technological advancements that have improved our standard living; however, these traits have led to the outcomes as highlighted in the above-mentioned article. 

More specifically, most of us (me included) are to blame for the current state of affairs in Washington, D.C.  Most of us have been lazy and typically voted (if we voted at all) the party line that seems the most appealing. Instead of participating in our government, we sought to improve our standard of living whether through possessions and/or activities (stemming from our own specific greed).  I suspect our blind trust (knowingly or unknowingly) of others attributed to some of this behavior.

While I encourage trust, we have to be careful because politicians are human, too. Most politicians seek reelection (greedy – even if for altruistic reasons). However, as I previously pointed out from my walks in Florida Congressional District 5 (formerly 3) it is difficult to build a grassroots base from which to seek public office; it is much easier (lazy and impatient) to seek donations from those that are well heeled.

As P.J. O’Rourke once stated, “when buying and selling are controlled by legislation, the first things to be bought and sold are legislators.” We need not look far; looking at Corrine Brown’s financial supporters, one will notice bipartisan support from those well-heeled individuals in the transportation and rail industries. To be fair to Ms. Brown, she is not alone.  All of our elected officials are guilty, more so for those longer in office.  This support comes with a quid quo pro as exemplified most recently by the Farm Bill that passed in the Senate.

To rectify this situation, we must first take responsibility (to ensure our freedom) by first acknowledging our own shortcomings, which we can use to motivate ourselves and others to act.  I believe (& it seems that I am not alone per the article) that term limits is the main solution.  Surely, there are other solutions, but I believe term-limits will have the most impact because:

·      Subjecting members of Congress to term limits will lead to more qualified people seeking office;

·      Special interest will see their influence diluted because they will not know whom to back; and

·      As result, candidates will need to reach out to you the voter allowing you more influence.

I suspect the framers of our Constitution did not consider term limits due to:

·      Serving one’s country was just that, a service, not a career (due in part to our ancestors’ reliance on agriculture at the time) and

·      The life expectancy rates 200 years ago were near half the rates today.

As a final note (or nail in the coffin), if what is good for the goose should be good for the gander then Congress should pass an amendment to the Constitution limiting their terms since Congress deemed it necessary to pass an amendment limiting the President to two terms.  Sadly, Congress currently controls the process, but if we act together then we can control the process. 

I envision one day a several million (maybe tens of million) American march on Washington, D.C. to force through Congress a bill that will eventually lead to such an amendment. This day would be preceded by: 

·      The overwhelming (as in table pounding) support of all Presidential candidates, which is all she or he can do for a bill passed by Congress that seeks to amend our Constitution and

·      The wide spread acknowledgement of our efforts in the media, such as our ‘Bill Drafting’ parties/events where we (the people) create the bill that will be submitted and passed by the necessary majority with which to send to the States for ratification.

New District, But Same Representative

Obviously, I have not been walking and talking in now what is officially known as District 5, formerly District 3.  The district numbering recently changed following the realignment that occurs every decade after the national census. Florida received two additional seats based on the census, which necessitated among others reasons the realignment.

Fortunately or unfortunately depending upon one’s view, I still have Corrine Brown as my representative.  It seems she has a lock on another two years.  One day I hope to change that, but making ends meet in a tough economic climate is….well, tough and has led me to focus my efforts and priorities on keeping my head afloat.

I know one way to remove her from office, which would be if we had term limits. I have faith and confidence that day is fast approaching.

Get Involved! It Is The Only Way To Protect Your Interest.

Time flies. It has been more than two months since I last posted, which leads me to think about one reason why we, as a nation, are so frustrated with our (federal) government.

I suspect my challenges are similar to most at a very high level. We, as a nation, have more obligations/commitments than there is time in the day to accomplish (i.e. we attempt to fit ten pounds in a five-pound sack). Consequently, higher priorities, such as family, career, staying fit, etc…, take precedent over investing time and efforts in things such as, our government. As a result of not investing our time and efforts (except on Election Day) in OUR government, we wake up to find one day that we do not like what our government is doing (Please forgive me if I do not speak for you and you are satisfied; keep doing what you are because it seems to be working).

We are to blame for this problem. We are ceding control to those we have little to no influence over. We elect politicians who typically have the biggest campaign account. If neither you nor I gave them the money, where did it come from and what kinds of strings are attached to the money? Forget the strings, donors have greater access than non-donors to our politicians. Consequently, this access gives the donors a greater ability to influence the political process.

To offset this influence, we need to get involved. I am not asking you to donate money; I am asking to do something harder. Make phone calls; go door to door. It will be enlightening, fun and most of all it will be rewarding. Find someone you like and respect that is making a sacrifice to represent you. We need citizen politicians, not career politicians. The longer a career politician is in office the more likely he or she will end up representing their financial backers’ interest, which may be (... and probably is) opposite to your interest. If you choose not to get involved, please never say anything bad about our government because if you cannot walk the walk please do not talk the talk.

Get involved!

Oh, one last thing to think about it. If we had a smaller government (i.e. we govern ourselves individually) then we would not need to get heavily involved, would we? Sounds like a post for another day on personal responsibility.

Saving Lives vs. Rail Transportation

What is more important, saving lives or advocating railroad transportation? I asked myself that question after reading Teen pleads guilty in pizza murder in the Metro section of the April 23^rd, 2010 print edition of the Florida Times Union.

Obviously, saving lives is more important. However, for Corrine Brown I believe advocating railroad transportation is more important (Ms. Brown chairs the Railroad subcommittee of the Transportation committee; the only other committee she sits on is Veteran Affairs).

Without even asking Ms. Brown, I know she would whole-heartily disagree. Who would not? Is it not human nature to have some natural instinct to care for others? However, realities of our own individual lives may leads us to take action(s) in the near-term that conflicts with this natural instinct.

In the case of Ms. Brown and the Democratic Leadership, it made perfect sense to place her on the Transportation Committee when she was elected in 1992 for 2 reasons:

1. There are railroads, airports, ports and waterways in her district; and

2. She and the Democratic Party would more likely receive donation from companies and individuals in these sectors than they would in say….early childhood development, lifelong learning, and communities.

I do not fault the individuals and companies that have donated to Corrine Brown. I would expect them to. I am all for railroad transportation, but what I do expect is for my representative, Ms Brown, to focus on representing more of the district than a select few for her and her political party’s financial well being (I say political party because the Republican Party is just as guilty). If she truly cared about the district then she would have found a way to be on a committee that would have a greater positive impact on the citizens of Florida’s 3^rd Congressional District (CD-3).

The following table shows all the committees our representatives could sit on (can click on chart to enlarge).

Based on what you may know of CD-3, which do you think would be appropriate? When I surveyed voters in the district, an overwhelming majority selected Education and Labor first. Transportation was typically fourth on the list after Financial Services and Small Business.

If I have not helped you convince yourself, please look at the subcommittees for Education and Labor and Transportation shown below and think about which would have the most impact on the people in CD-3 (can click on chart to enlarge).

Back to the above mentioned news article. The story is similar to most news articles pertaining to CD-3, young black person commits a crime ….. Sometimes, news outlets report about community representatives (ministers, social workers, community activists, etc..) that speak out against the police for either going over the line or not doing enough to prevent such a crime. I could lead into personal responsibility, family unity, etc…being most important in preventing crimes, but the purpose of this bog entry is show that Ms. Brown could have done more. I could go as far as to say that she has blood on her hands. However, she is like most of our elected officials in Washington. She is concerned more about donations and running for office than doing what is right.

For the past 18 years she has spent approximately 10,000 hours (or 5 years if one assumes a full-time career) on transportation matters. Just think, if she spent that same amount of time on the Education and Labor committee then is possible that one life in the district could have been saved? I definitely think so and it is just example on why we need term limits. She and the Democratic Party are obviously not going to change. She is too well entrenched. Term limits would force her out and give us the opportunity to have better representation.

Term Limits = Voices Heard

Have you ever thought about the one thing that we can do today to help solve a large percentage of the problems associated with our Congress? I have, a lot. I conclude it is quite simple. We vote for candidates that support term limits. To better understand my thesis, I will explain the ‘why’ and the ‘how’ below.

The ‘Why’

The key benefit of term limits is that more candidates will run, which means that there will be a greater chance that our voices will be heard in Washington.

When was the last time that Corrine Brown went door to door as aggressively as I did? The answer was back in the 1990s. She now spends her time supporting special interest (her donors: individuals & PACs) possibly at places like football games. More specifically, she primarily supports railroads.

Should she not support early childhood development, lifelong learning, and communities? Yes, but there is no money in these areas, but there is money in railroads.

She has used the community’s goodwill to her and to her financial supporters best interest. No serious contender has run against her in a decade because the powers-to-be in the community (i.e. ministers, community activists, etc…) have not held her accountable, which is a crying shame.

However, Corrine Brown is not much different than most other representatives. Our representatives bow to these well-funded interests because they need the donations to stay in office. It is a win/win/lose situation. The candidate wins, the special interest wins (see below) because they know it is hard to vote out an incumbent absent a scandal and the community loses (District 3 still has high poverty, high unemployment, high crime, etc.).

Special Interest Wins

If not convinced, please think about this. Why do young, healthy people that choose to be uninsured now have to pay for insurance? Short answer, the well-funded interest (in this case, the insurance industry) paid-off your representative (through campaign donations) to make it happen in the recently passed healthcare bill. As a result of this bill, government will grow, which means we will pay higher taxes. One of those taxes will be hidden in the cost medical devices, which will be passed on to all consumers through insurance premiums.

If not railroads or healthcare, it will be something else in favor of well-funded interests until we receive term limits.

I know I have not connected the dots as well as I could, so I reserve the right to keep coming back to this point.

The ‘How’

Support is action, not talk. Once in office, our representative’s top priority should be term limits, similar to our current President’s making healthcare his top priority.

We know it will be a top priority when our elected officials do whatever they can to create a bill, vote on the bill and pass the bill to add an amendment to our Constitution whereby members of Congress can serve only ‘x’ number of terms. We will know it is a top priority when:

1. We see them on C-SPAN at 10:30 PM EST speaking on the floor with the same fervor that current members spoke about healthcare the past six months;

2. The Speaker of the House stands on the steps of the Capital and makes a proclamation that the bill is great for America similar to what the current Speaker did in support of healthcare; and

3. Other similar visible acts.

If we do not see such actions then we know it is not a top priority and we must act accordingly. We most vote for the best challenger that indicates that they will help create and vote for such a bill. If they fail to do so after being elected then we must act again. We vote for the best challenger (I do not care if the challenger is not as smart, not as nice, etc..All I care about is putting term limits in place). We keep doing this until our members of Congress are subject to term limits. It is that simple.

Last Thought

The Founders of our nation did not have to contend with term limits because life expectancy 200+ years took care of that.