thought provoking...

Wobbie

from my little Salt Lake paper. don't let the tea-baggerish title sway you. it's really just a well thought out op-ed that speaks to how fucked up both parties are.

What happened to my beloved country?

The sun shimmered on the choppy waters of Lake Powell as I piloted a pontoon boat toward the marina during the Fourth of July weekend.

We’d done our best to celebrate freedom as we barbecued burgers and hot dogs on the back of the boat, did some fishing, swam in the reservoir’s warm water and enjoyed the scenery.

Except for the drone of the motor and some tunes playing on the iPod, things were quiet. There was time to think.

So I did.

My first thought was that building the Glen Canyon Dam and creating Lake Powell was an amazing accomplishment. How could man conceive of a place like this or plan for the flooding of these massive canyons?

Then I became more philosophical and slightly sad.

Would the America of 2011 even think about investing the tax dollars and the manpower to attempt something as massive as the Colorado River Storage Project? Debate the environmental consequences of Lake Powell all you want — and I certainly have done my share of that over the years — but the motivation for its building was mostly pure. The project provides clean electricity and stores water that benefits millions of people. Hundreds of thousands more enjoy the recreation it provides. Yet, in this day and age where low tax rates are king and where we fight wars without asking most Americans for any kind of sacrifice, a project like this — conceived in the ’50s and built in the ’60s — would probably never happen.

Would we have the will to construct an interstate highway system? Would a Central Utah Project even be a possibility? Would we have bothered to have a space program to put a man on the moon?

Going further back, would we dare pass excise taxes on hunting and fishing equipment to save habitat or set aside land for a national wildlife refuge system? Would Americans view their national park system as frivolous? And how about the laws to protect our water and air that many modern-day politicians seem more than willing to throw away?

On July Fourth, as I sat in the parking lot of a Mesquite, Nev., casino managed by the Ivy League-educated grandson of a Chinese immigrant listening to a wonderful pops concert of patriotic music capped by a grand fireworks display, I did even more thinking.

We’re scared of immigrants these days. Maybe we always have been. But they often work harder than we do, not taking for granted our great country. They are “the other,” often blamed for perceived high taxes, crowded classrooms and expensive health insurance premiums. We like the cheap food and labor that immigrants provide but resent it when their children attend our schools or when they need medical care.

I think America has become a nation of whiners who want the services government provides but don’t want to make the sacrifices to pay for or protect them.

I heard all the great patriotic preening on July Fourth about how we are the greatest country the world has ever known. There was praise for our soldiers, though certainly no will to pay the taxes needed to keep them armed, safe and appreciated. We seem content to send the few willing to volunteer to serve in foreign hell holes again and again and again, oblivious to their sacrifice.

Excuse me for watching the charade in Washington, where compromise and problem-solving are viewed as political weakness and where big money rules, and then wondering if our beloved United States has seen better days.

Thus, as I savored the benefits of our free society by watching fireworks, listening to patriotic music and enjoying the freedoms of the great outdoors on the July Fourth weekend, I felt a bit of uncharacteristic melancholy.

I worried that in our greed and selfishness, we’ve lost our way, forgetting that sacrificing for the common good combined with protections for individual freedoms made our country great.

Prince Of Dorkness

Brilliant.

It really is.

Wobbie

Prince Of Dorkness wrote:

Brilliant.

It really is.

I kinda thought so....just written by an average guy without an agenda. kinda sad, too

Jason P

That article would strike true for me except for one tiny fault in the articles logic ... I already pay taxes. The article strikes a tone as if we (collectively) don't pay taxes.

This sentence particularly:

I think America has become a nation of whiners who want the services government provides but don’t want to make the sacrifices to pay for or protect them.

I agree. And the majority that want to raise taxes and "make sacrifices" are all looking to the top 1% and the monopoly man to pay for it.

Wobbie

Jason P wrote:

That article would strike true for me except for one tiny fault in the articles logic ... I already pay taxes. The article strikes a tone as if we (collectively) don't pay taxes.

This sentence particularly:

I think America has become a nation of whiners who want the services government provides but don’t want to make the sacrifices to pay for or protect them.

I agree. And the majority that want to raise taxes and "make sacrifices" are all looking to the top 1% and the monopoly man to pay for it.

yeah. but this is the sentence that stands out to me:

Excuse me for watching the charade in Washington, where compromise and problem-solving are viewed as political weakness and where big money rules

Nero fiddles, while Rome burns :x

he.who.forgets

very well written and true on so many levels.

Jason P

imalive wrote:

yeah. but this is the sentence that stands out to me:

Excuse me for watching the charade in Washington, where compromise and problem-solving are viewed as political weakness and where big money rules

Nero fiddles, while Rome burns :x

That I agree with.

We need to start electing smart people instead of slick-talking caterers. It won't ever happen, but that is what we need to do. Instead we are left with representation that cater to big money or groups that keep them in office. Corporations, unions, etc. This is why spending will not be reduced. This is why they need the American taxpayer to "make sacrifices", in my opinion (although I'm becoming convinced that my opinion is becoming fact).

Wobbie

Jason P wrote:

imalive wrote:

yeah. but this is the sentence that stands out to me:

Excuse me for watching the charade in Washington, where compromise and problem-solving are viewed as political weakness and where big money rules

Nero fiddles, while Rome burns :x

That I agree with.

We need to start electing smart people instead of slick-talking caterers. It won't ever happen, but that is what we need to do. Instead we are left with representation that cater to big money or groups that keep them in office. Corporations, unions, etc. This is why spending will not be reduced. This is why they need the American taxpayer to "make sacrifices", in my opinion (although I'm becoming convinced that my opinion is becoming fact).

yeah, we just need to elect people who have the good of the country as priority #1 instead of the good of their political party or their personal good and/or the good of their benefactors. I am wondering if that will ever happen again...

Jason P

imalive wrote:

yeah, we just need to elect people who have the good of the country as priority #1 instead of the good of their political party or their personal good and/or the good of their benefactors. I am wondering if that will ever happen again...

I really don't think so, at least on the national stage. I'm becoming jaded on even getting emotionally invested in the presidential race .... I'm just setting myself up for disappointment. Even though I wasn't an Obama supporter during the last election, I did believe he was going to make "change". I didn't know if it would be good or bad, but I believed the message and I didn't even vote for him.

Well, I have not seen any change. I don't expect any Republican candidate to make change. The nation really is engaged in a retarded tug-of-war on social issues and that takes focus away from fiscal issues.
The reason is simple:

It's easy to take a stance on social issues like abortion or gay rights .... you either think it is right or wrong. Fiscal issues are much more complicated.

Anybody can have an opinion on abortion, and most do by the time they turn 18. But if you don't know how to balance a checkbook, fiscal issues are much more confusing. Heck, I took college level economic courses and I find the majority of it confusing. And politicians understand this quite well. If the heat gets turned up too much on spending, they can use a social issue much like a smoke grenade to distract and slink away.

That is the conundrum I face and the reason why I don't want to raise taxes. Hell, I want to decrease taxes. Let's force our "leaders" to squirm and actually figure out how to run this country effectively and efficient.

Prince Of Dorkness

Jason P wrote:

That article would strike true for me except for one tiny fault in the articles logic ... I already pay taxes. The article strikes a tone as if we (collectively) don't pay taxes.

This sentence particularly:

I think America has become a nation of whiners who want the services government provides but don’t want to make the sacrifices to pay for or protect them.

I agree. And the majority that want to raise taxes and "make sacrifices" are all looking to the top 1% and the monopoly man to pay for it.

I don't agree with that at all.

we're at the lowest Taxation we've been at and still the tea baggers all whine about how they're "Taxed Enough Already."

They're more interested in making the top 1% live nearly tax-free than they are in the top 1% paying their fair share.

But they sure do whine about how they want everything but want everyone else to get nothing.

Prince Of Dorkness

Jason P wrote:

That I agree with.

We need to start electing smart people instead of slick-talking caterers. It won't ever happen, but that is what we need to do. Instead we are left with representation that cater to big money or groups that keep them in office. Corporations, unions, etc. This is why spending will not be reduced. This is why they need the American taxpayer to "make sacrifices", in my opinion (although I'm becoming convinced that my opinion is becoming fact).

Again... I agree. Although it seems like there is a large amount of people who want everyone else to make sacrifices so they can protect the richest people who didn't NEED a tax cut.