In 1920, Thomas R Marshall, Vice President under Woodrow Wilson stated, “What this country needs is a really good five-cent cigar.”  Records are not clear as to whether or not we ever attained the goal of the five-cent cigar but one thing is a certainty today, we have an abundance of two-bit politicians. 

Under the stewardship of our elected officials over the past three or four decades, our constitution has been rendered meaningless, as courts now make law not elected representatives, and the “Will of the People” be damned.  While the “Founding Fathers” have long since gone, the time has now come for the “Sons of the Founders” to follow in their footsteps.  What this country really needs is responsible leadership and a government dedicated to the principles that have made the United States the proud nation it is today. 

The political “quagmire” that is congressional politics today is a sham, a joke, a disgrace. The Government of the United States of America has degenerated into a game of political  “gotcha.” Nothing of substance is being accomplished by this out dated, over the hill, dysfunctional body we refer to as those we elected to represent us. The American people need to seriously consider wholesale removal of every current office holder in the United States Government (but if we did it would just be declared unconstitutional.) 

What is important of a servant on our Federal Courts is not their position on Roe V Wade, school prayer or gay rights.  What is important is the competence to understand and interpret the law in the context it was written, this and nothing more.  What is important is to identify and eliminate real threats to the lives of the American People, our way of life, the bounty of our environment and the continuation of our economic prosperity.  What is important is a functional governmental body, focused on substance, unencumbered by the pettiness of personal partisanship. 

This is the true “litmus test,” and if they cannot pass it, “it is time for them to go.” 

The politics of today are no longer predicated on such values as principle, pride, honorable conviction and purpose, rather the practice of character assassination and scandal. The government that was once of, by and for the people, has been replaced by power hungry ideologues, driven by their lust to obtain a key position in a “New World Order.”  Harsh rhetoric?  Measure their performance with respect to the real issues affecting your state or community.  The people’s business is not a function of personal political ambition.  This fact needs to be clearly and loudly communicated to those we elect, as most develop a serious hearing disorder in this area once elected. 

Lastly, while checks and balances are clearly necessary to ensure equal representation, at last examination, no one elected the media to an office of government.  We must never allow any restriction of free speech or the right of any citizen to voice their opinions no matter how conflicting they may be to our own.  We must also never allow that same medium, with such a power to persuade, to become an instrument of propaganda. What this country doesn’t need, are selfish ideologues with a personal power agenda, intent on manipulating information to sell us on their “nickel-dime” solutions. 

In life, there is hand-eye coordination, there is putting your money where your mouth is and there is watching what you say.  Life for politicians is to have their hand in your wallet, their eye on your vote, running off at the mouth to get your money and watching their backs to be sure nothing they say can be used against them.  It is quite fascinating to evaluate what you hear politicians say, while watching their actions define what they really mean. 

The way in which our government operates today has become so bureaucratic, institutionally layered and essentially dysfunctional, it is a wonder that anything gets done at all.  Moreover, the “feud” between the two major parties in Congress has become so bitter, so partisan and underhanded, that it is now an institution in total disgrace.

For example:  There is a significant contingent within this nation that firmly believes there is neither a protracted threat from terrorism nor any reason for our military involvement in Iraq.  Likewise, there is an equal contingent that believes the exact opposite.  It is a debate that must be resolved and not allowed to serve as an emotional prod to stir the passions of the respective constituencies. 

Additionally, there is presently more fear and anxiety over the possibility of 100-year consequences from global warming, than the quite immediate requirement to determine the reality of the threat from radical Islamism.  Even if everyone suddenly accepted the global warming premise, providing a solution that does not involve draconian changes to our way of life is still decades away.  The requirement to determine the reality of the deadly threat posed from Islamist Fascism needs to be ascertained today.

Suffice it to say, politicians have chosen to “surge” their attention on the “long warm.”   You can “hear” them now, “see,” we are absolutely committed to developing solutions for your future welfare.  And, just as they addressed the pending insolvency of Social Security, they will conveniently move out the date for an “action certain,” avoiding any requirement to actually provide a workable solution.   

Replacing power-generating plants, fueled by coal, oil, and natural gas, with nuclear power plants that emit essentially water vapor, is a non-starter for the global warming alarmists.  So, as the price of gasoline soars at the pump and the extortion by the oil producing nations escalates, politicians respond to the paradox with “show and tell.” 

Investing in safe, efficient and clean nuclear power could significantly reduce carbon emissions.  Even the ever-so-green Europeans and especially France, are using nuclear power to meet their energy needs.  So why do our politicians not move to implement this obvious solution?   It would be controversial and provoke the environmental activists.  Better to avoid a real solution while appearing to support the chanting ignorant than actually fixing a problem. 

The people of the United States of America have become “Balkanized.”  We have allowed our government to reduce the population to our specific ethnic and cultural identities.  Now they use these differences as an instrument of agitation to ensure we continue to fight amongst ourselves.  We have fallen for their strategy of “divide and conquer,” hook, line and sinker. 

To be morose, our government has developed into a malignant lesion.  It has become so bloated with redundant staff, feeding on its ever-growing need for our own life’s blood in the form of our income, that it has sapped our will and energy to fight it.  We listen to what politicians tell us but we do not see what they actually mean.  Until we open our eyes to their charade, we will continue to be deaf to their message of deception.