Thoughts Aloud

The more I see of ex-Governor Robamaney, the more I want to scream at Republicans “what the f— is the matter with you people”?

Once again, the GOP has chosen an empty suit to represent it in the presidential election!

This does not mean an automatic GOP loss though. Sometimes the Dems choose their own even emptier suit (Kerry? Gore?) and the GOP empty suit actually wins the election (Bush?) but the Republic always loses in the end.

Why do they keep doing this (I say ‘they” because I have not backed any of the empty suits in either party. Indeed, Ron Paul is the first duopoly party candidate I have supported in years.)

Professor Einstein said that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result. By that definition, can we not conclude that the majority of the voters in this Republic are insane?

Are we to believe that this once-great Republic, the one who sent humans to the moon, the one on the brink of finding cures for virtually every human disease, the one that produced the greatest combination of wealth and liberty the world has ever seen, that such a Republic can no longer produce any statesmen(women) capable of garnering a nomination, wining an election, then governing per our Constitution, guided by the health of the Republic and its People?

I refuse to believe this. I also refuse to believe that the People are somehow incapable of nominating then electing a statesman(woman) to the office of the president. Why then do we continue to see the constant repetition of this farce?

I think there are several things inter-operating to make this continue to happen:

→ First and foremost is the corruption that pervades every aspect of our Republic. The system by which we choose our leaders is so corrupt that we would find it a form of dark humor if we were watching it happen in another country.

→ The oft discussed “dumbing down” process is now yielding dividends unexpected even by those who set it in motion. Obviously, this process has left an alarming portion of the voting public too intellectually deficient to make rational decisions.

→ The “cycle of dependency” where more and more people are lured into dependency on government which grows larger in response, thereby causing even more dependency, in an eventually fatal downward spiral. Of course, this “cycle of dependency” also feeds the “dumbing down” process.

–> “Crony Capitalism” (or “Crapitalism” as some, including my hero John Stossel call it). This is the system that comes into existence when otherwise productive business entities find it more beneficial to cater to (and make questionable deals with) bureaucrats than to their customers. Of course, this feeds the corruption of government in the process.

(As an aside, why would I label John Stossel a “hero” when most of what he says is little more than common sense? I do that because he says these things in the major media, at great risk to his career and perhaps, to his physical safety.)

→ Then there is what I think is the single biggest aspect of our current situation – we are a nation in denial. We instinctively know that, if, as a nation, we acknowledged the reality of the situation we have gotten ourselves into, we would then have to admit that most of us do not have a single clue what to do about it. So, we hide from the grim reality and live in a world of illusion instead. We cling to such nonsense as:

** “Well the stock market is doing pretty good so things can’t really be that bad.” So I must ask, is the stock market really gaining value faster than its underlying currency is losing it? You don’t want to know, do you?

** “Well, we are doing better than Europe.” I find that argument as persuasive as “poor fellow is dying of AIDS – lucky me, I only have lung cancer.” I guess even a stupid excuse is better than no excuse at all.

** “I we just elect _________ (you fill in the blank), then things will be alright.” I simply ask – how and why? What has _______ said or done to justify such thinking?

Let us use real-world examples here – Romney versus Obama. If we believe the polls, a majority of Americans think Obama and his policies are on the wrong track. Yet, if we examine the record of the one stint Romney has had as an elected executive, we find a pattern that is almost a perfect match to Obama’s, only on a smaller scale. What, then makes him the better choice other than not being Obama?

** “If we just get God back into America – in school prayer, by hanging copies of the 10 Commandments on every wall, by praying more, by sacrificing our oldest child, by who knows what…” I say, let us examine those countries where God (by whatever local name) has a more more prominent role in government. Are they doing so much better than us? Better yet, are there any such religious paradises that you wish to relocate to? How about Iran? No? Then how about Saudi Arabia? OK, you prefer Christian. How about Mexico?

** Then there is my all-time favorite “I know things are bad but there is nothing I can do about it.” OK, so you are leaving it all to someone else to take care of and have been doing so for years. How is that working out for you?

We have several very active threads in the very blog discussing various aspects of this situation. And, while all of them have been great mental exercise, not a one has produced a single idea that, at the same time, would actually work –and– has a snowball’s chance in hell of being taken seriously.

The point to this screed, if there is one, is that, if we are to persist in the “empty suit” process, then we should stop listening to any of the crap our “preselected candidates” spew out and concentrate specifically on the suits. Which candidate’s suit is of superior fabric? How about the tailoring? The color? The selection of shirts and ties? Should we include shoes in our selection process? What about empty casual wear?

BTW, what can I have meant by “preselected candidates” in the paragraph above? Try this. Before the start of the GOP nominating process, was it not quite clear that Robamaney was the choice of the establishment Republicans? Then we (the nation) went through this long process where millions of dollars were expended, many lies were repeated, several reputations were destroyed, the will of the people more-or-less ignored (or, at best, totally manipulated), only to arrive at the “choice” that was preordained months earlier.

Was all that simply to make us feel that we had a meaningful part in selecting this empty suit that nobody, probably not even his own mother, can get excited about? An empty suit whose only possible positive attribute is that he is possibly not as bad as Obama?

I ask you, am I the only American who is embarrassed and disgusted with this whole process and the combination of ignorance, greed and corruption upon which it rests?

Truth be told my friends, there are some really evil people behind the scenes, pulling the strings and manipulating the process. But, they simply CANNOT succeed without our active support and cooperation.

Can it possibly be that this is exactly what we the sheeple demand? Can it possibly be that so many of us can be bought for a few pennies and a few false promises? How else could it continue?

Think about it.

Troy L Robinson