by Chris Oss,am
March 26, 2020
Do you find that your involvement in politics these days far exceeds your actual interest in politics... if not in recent times, but from your past interest in politics? Are you watching more news, but feeling as if you are NOT getting the entire picture from those shiny faces on CNN, MSNBC, FOX or any of the national news programs that bombard you with advertisements for the military (I've been seeing a lot of ARMY recruiting commercials lately), military contractors (Boeing has commercials about jet engines that I doubt few people could afford) or health insurance, including the ACA (better known as Obamacare) which is offered to those who can't afford insurance and could never afford to use said insurance due to the fact that they are unemployed.
Do you find yourself wondering why the U.S. Government's response to a pandemic was worse than most (if not every) other countries on the planet? Think about this: If instead of a pandemic, we were faced with an invasion and before you try to refute this premise, remember what happened at the Capitol on January 6th of 2021. Our government was not only caught "flat-footed" but it was actually knocked down. So, imagine what would have happened if instead of desperate Americans, those who ran roughshod over Washington had been the dreaded Russians? After all, they did influence our elections through Facebook on a meager budget of less than 100K. So, how difficult would it have been for them to occupy America with, say $200K, or one million dollars or the promise of Medicare for All or a $15 dollar minimum wage? If the U.S. government has failed to protect its citizens against a pandemic that we all saw coming, how could it protect us from the unknown? And, before anyone reading this gets high and mighty by blaming Trump, consider this: If Obama had done such a good job, Trump (nor any Republican presidential candidate) could have beaten Hillary Clinton who promised a "virtual third Obama" term through the continuation of Obama policies. And consider this: The Democrats control the Presidency, the House, and the Senate, yet they don't seem to be able to do anything but break promises and fail to push for policies that the majority of American citizens support.
Why is it that the U.S. government only seems to work slowly for the masses while moving rather quickly for that one percent who control most of the wealth (an ever-increasing disparity) in the richest country Earth has ever known. Speaking of which, why is it that the richest country the Earth has ever known can only end half of all child poverty within its borders when the Federal Reserve just printed 20 percent of all dollars ever printed last year. It seems that printing a few billion more could end the other half of child poverty. It seems that the trillions of dollars that were given to the rich could have ended poverty for children and the parents of those child and even adults who have no children. What are our leaders priorities, because they don’t seem to want to ensure our health, ensure living wages, guarantee the right to the pursuit of Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.
And, one last question (or series of questions related to the same topic). Why do we rarely hear the news about how poorly our leaders have been responding the several crises we face these days? Oh sure, Trump was constantly criticized, especially when he claimed to be in favor of reducing the number of troops America has in countries that don’t want American troops, but Biden has said that he wants to keep American troops in Afghanistan, where we’ve been for twenty years with no discernible benefit. Why is the New York Times still in business after getting America in the last Iraq war based on known lies that were given to them by the Bush administration? Why don’t we ever hear the news ponder this? “Until every American man, woman and child has clean water, food and shelter, should there be any billionaires?” or this “Does one have to be a sociopath to have billions of dollars while ignoring the fact that their billions directly cause the deaths of those living in poverty?” Bill Gates, I’m looking at you. Oprah, your healthy food can’t cleanse you of the guilt you should be feeling at hoarding resources that could save lives.
To me, one of the biggest indicators of the failure of leadership in America is the fact that so many people have become engaged in politics because, if times were good, most would live lives of ignorant bliss and prosperity. This is why I wrote my book “Solutions: Enough complaining. Let’s fix America.” In it, I not only complain about the biggest issues we face as a nation and species, but I offer solutions. Whether my own ideas or others, there are alternatives to the current system in which we live; Alternative economics systems where wealth is not so heavily weighted to the few, alternative justice systems where all crime are punished in accordance with the severity and impact on individuals, communities and society, alternative systems in which a major (if not all) feel welcomed and therefore seek the betterment of the whole, alternatives to crappy leaders (like Pelosi, McConnell, Schumer) who have been in office for decades while life for most Americans has declined. This why I taught myself programming so I could offer my book as an Android app to more people for less than $1 (one dollar). The world continues to get worse for most people when it shouldn’t. There are solutions.
Solutions for Android devices $0.99
Solutions in paperback (I get the hypocrisy, but where else can you buy anything these days?) $16
Solutions for Kindle (I get the hypocrisy, but where else can you buy anything these days?) $10
