End of the Year Observations

End of the Year Observations

The end of 2012 is near and I'm overwhelmed by all the stupidity that is flying around the United States.  Here are a few examples of what has occurred and my subsequent opinion.

1.  Our country is headed for a "fiscal cliff" and our elected representatives can't come to an agreement on how to avoid this financial calamity, act as adults and run the country.  The Democrats and Republicans argue over every small, insignificant point, as Americans and the rest of the world view our government as ineffective, stalled and allowing the United States to suffer.

At the same time, the US Senate voted on a resolution to "ask" the Village Voice (a New York City newspaper) to remove the Adult Entertainment section from its' content.  Apparently, the Senate is concerned that this specific portion of the Village Voice is nothing more than advertisements for prostitution.

Are you telling me that the Adult Entertainment section of a newspaper is more important to discuss and vote on, instead of trying to fix the huge problems of our country?  Is this why we elected these officials (over and over and over)?

Our country is so polarized that any movement towards a center-based and sensible solution is fought with such hatred that no movement is the result.  I don't care what people think, but we must make some changes that are necessary.

Hike the Social Security age from 65 to 67 over a span of 5 years.  We can cut the military by one aircraft carrier, one fighter squadron and 10,000 troops and still be the strongest nation on Earth.

Taxes on incomes over $400,000 will provide some relief to the national debt, but we must also eliminate loopholes that allow companies to pay nothing at all.  General Electric had an income over $10 billion in 2011 and paid nothing for corporate taxes.  That is plain crazy, but legal under the current tax code.

2.  The tragedy in Newtown Connecticut was horrific; the deaths of 20 children and 6 adults clearly indicates the country must do something to slow down the occurrences of such massacres. 

It doesn't happen in just Newtown, but all over the country.  Since the Newtown massacre, over 100 other Americans have been killed by guns.  

I am not advocating for taking guns from Americans, or trying to eliminate the right to bear arms...all I want to do is explore ways to slow down this violence.

How did America react to this tragedy?  With an explosion of rhetoric about how guns don't kill people, people kill people.  The National Rifle Association (NRA) wants an armed guard in every school.  How many armed guards are needed in a large high school of 4000 students?  1, 5, or 20?

At the same time, the NRA backs political measures to cut, cut, cut the Federal budget.  How can we place armed guards in schools, while cutting the budget so drastically?

The South Carolina legislature passed a bill this past week allowing school teachers to carry concealed weapons in the classroom. This is one of the stupidest things I have heard in my life.

We read in the newspapers how stressed out teachers are due to class sizes, unruly children, low pay and more...and now these over-stressed teachers can carry a gun in the classroom?

How will the NRA react, if one of these armed, over-stressed teachers go berserk and takes it out on the students?  What's the answer to that...another armed guard, watching the teachers?

I don't know the answer to this problem, but can't we as a nation, have a discussion to find common ground and attempt to protect all of our citizens, adults and children, a bit better?

3.  The Iowa Supreme Court ruled that an employer can fire an employee for being "too irresistible"...are you kidding me?  A dentist in Iowa hired a woman 10 years ago and after this extended period of time, he decided this woman was "too irresistible", he terminated her employment with him.  The case went to court and the dentist was told that his actions were legal.  Sounds more like sexual harassment, (or sexual denial) to me.

This story generates so many questions that need answers.  such as...if this woman was so irresistible, why was she hired in the first place, 10 years ago?  Did the firing have anything to do with the fact that the wife of the dentist found personal text messages between the female employee and the dentist?

Since the was an office dress code, why wasn't the female employee adhering to the dress code?  According to court documents, the female employee wore her "scrubs too tight and in a provocative manner".  Why didn't the dentist tell the female employee to buy larger scrubs for the office?

Then the final straw occurred when the Iowa Supreme Court allowed the termination for being "too irresistible".  

Come on...with no record of counseling to the female employee about her dress, or any mention in her work record of sub-standard performance, this sounds like a disgruntled wife telling her husband to fire a female employee that may cause problems for her marriage.

 

This wasn't a firing over being too irresistible, this was the result of a jealous wife, ridding herself of a potential opponent for her husband's attention (and money).  The entire situation could  have been resolved in a better way.

That's the main problem in our country....everyone reacts, yells and screams, but no one wants to sit down, find common ground and act responsibly.

The Time for Action is NOW!

The Time for Action is NOW!

Like most other Americans, I am not pleased by the results of the 2012 election.  I am not speaking about the re-election of President Obama...I'm upset with the blind re-election of the career politicians that brought America to this point in time.

Presidents come and go, that's a given, but when we continue the careers of politicians that have their own personal agendas (think continued re-election), we are making the decision to keep our country from moving forward.

For example, think of those politicians in office that have careers spanning more than 10, 20 or even 30 years in office.  Do you know how many presidents we have gone through in that amount of time?

The late Robert Byrd, from West Virginia, served over 57 years in office, that is at least 7 presidents during his tenure.  Or the late Strom Thurmond from South Carolina...he was in office for 47 years...does anyone believe these people were in touch with average Americans, after being career politicians all their lives?

We have Senators and Congress members that are currently serving terms in office that have been there for over 30 years...none of whom have really done anything , except get re-elected and continue to accrue benefits, pensions and votes.

I hear it all the time..."we need change in Washington", so why are we being idiots and re-electing the same people all the time?  That's not change, that's insanity, as defined by Albert Einstein, who said, "if you continue to do the same thing all the time, yet expect a different result, that's insanity."

I am suggesting that we begin a citizen advocacy group that provides Americans with a voice in making "real" changes in Washington DC by ridding ourselves of any and all elected officials after a maximum of 10 years in Congress and 12 years in the Senate.  Of course, I believe this line of action should apply to all levels of elected officials.

There would be several immediate benefits from this philosophy.  First, we would rid ourselves of the parasites that use elected offices for their own gain.  How many millionaires are in Congress making themselves richer? 

Remember, only recently Congress voted not to allow themselves to gain from inside financial information, and even that backfired when the wording of the resolution excluded family members from this action.

Second, we could save millions over time by having the level of benefits and lifetime pensions reduced.  Did you know that a member of Congress only has to serve a minimum of 5 years before qualifying for a lifetime pension paid for by our taxes?

Most importantly, is instead of having candidates run for office that want to make a career in politics, we would find real leaders wanting to serve and do what is good for the country. 

Nearly all current office holders (at any level of government) want to stay in office as long as possible; none of which believe their effectiveness erodes after a long period of time.  These politicians have the mindset that they have a "lifetime" in office to work to make changes.

If we had elected officials that knew their time was limited in office, they would understand the real need to make effective change within a specified time period.  We would have leaders that want to make changes in positive ways, instead of "kicking the can down the road" every 2 years.

Of course, this is only the initial step in trying to make positive changes in Washington DC.  We need to push for "common sense" solutions on all problems.

At the moment, the country is facing a "fiscal cliff" due to the stupidity of career politicians in Washington DC.  We need to find ways to balance our budget...the operative word is "balance".  This is the type of solution we need to utilize.

The president wants to raise taxes on those who make over $250,000 per year, the Republicans do not want any tax increases, everyone accepts that spending must be reduced, but no one agrees where to start...there is plenty of room for "balance".

I see no reason why the eligibility age for Social Security shouldn't be raised to 67 over a span of years.  This is a no-brainer and anyone that is against it doesn't want true reform.

I see no reason why we can't raise the limit from $250,000 per year of income to at least $500,000 before higher taxes are enacted.  This would reduce the number of small businesses that would be adversely affected by the lower standard of $250,000.

I don't see any reason why we can't give up a battleship, an aircraft carrier, and about 10,000 troops from the military, or how about a reduction of foreign aid to the dozens of prosperous countries we still send money?  This step alone could save well over $100 billion dollars a year and over $1 trillion over 10 years.

I am going to attempt to start an advocacy group for these, and other, common sense solutions for the United States.  Only by acting as a group with one voice, can we make real changes in the way our government (at all levels) operates.

At the bottom of this blog is a Feedback button.  If you have comments, thoughts or suggestions for me, please press the Feedback option and leave your comments.

As I continue down this road, I hope to empower  hundreds, then thousands and more Americans into working together for "real" change.  Remember, change is in the hands of Americans and we must begin to use it effectively.  Otherwise, we can only blame ourselves.