Why do people hide behind a political party?
I am not a fan of politics, mostly because I hate lies, and corruption. Sound cynical? Well who's not these days? You can't have a reasonable discussion about real world issues these days without being labeled a right or left wing extremist. Not that I'm being reasonable... This is a rant after all :)
I listened to a discussion at work tonight (and I withhold all names out of respect for the involved parties privacy) about a subject as simple as recycling. Yeah recycling, like sorting your cans and plastics before taking them to the transfer station. Somehow this was labeled as a liberal agenda! don't ask.
A man an his daughter have a conversation where she asks her father why he doesn't recycle. His first response is that he is "a republican and until the government mandates that he does so, they can kiss his A**"
Okay first of all what the hell does that have to do with anything? I don't care if your a Republican, Democrat, Libertarian or other party affiliate. No one in their right mind wants to hand the next generation (our children and grandchildren) a steaming pile of Dog Sh*! in place of the clean and healthy planet we inherited from previous generations regardless of political view. Since when does our political allegiance dictate what we think? Isn't it supposed to be the other way around?
I am not saying that this generation didn't inherit some problems but does that mean we just continue to ignore past mistakes and pass it down until our children's children are born into a world where they need oxygen masks straight out of the womb? I don't know about you but that's not the world I'm hoping to leave behind for my kids.
I know I've taken an extremist point of view about this man's recycling habits. Surely his aluminum cans are not going to cause massive world degradation all by themselves but if this squirrelly idea truly is the general opinion among republicans (and I have to think that it's not) then we're screwed! Why would anyone even make a statement like that you ask? Well since you did ask here's my opinion...
This approach is tantamount to sticking your head in the sand. This world does have pollution problems, there IS such a thing a global warming and there are those out there making way to much profit from "the way things are" to legitimately want change. This man is not one of them, but the political party he holds so near and dear supports capitalism and big business (now those are the guys that need to start recycling their cans).
Capitalism can be a great thing and a person should be allowed to succeed based on their work ethic and determination. I support that. I also believe that, even though we tend to label them as monsters, big business has it's place in the world today, we are like it or not a world economy. Don't get me wrong I would much prefer to support the guy struggling to sell his wares on Main Street America, I would choose to buy my produce grown locally instead of having my lettuce shipped across the country in a freight truck. That's who I am, I want to support my neighbor, but there are always two sides to that coin... As it happens my neighbor is a truck driver and chances are so is one of yours. He depends on big business, no one needs a truck driver to deliver their produce from the corner market.
That said big business has been allowed to many loop holes. Loop holes do not provide success based on work ethic and determination. They provide success by lining the pockets of our government officials to gain unfair tax advantages over the small time shop on the corner. Who's fault is this? Well since you've asked once again... IT'S OURS ... Yup, We the People. We have tolerated corruption in our government for way to long. As long as things run smoothly and the bubble doesn't burst we're happy. Happy living beyond our means and over extending ourselves to the point of no return. We do this in our personal lives and we allow our elected officials to do it with our country, then to top it off we have the audacity to be angry when the bubble finally does burst. There will always be consequences for our actions or lack there of.
Health Care Reform.... There I said it (Wait don't shoot) obviously the current plan labeled "Obama Care" is not the final solution to all our problems, but in truth... Where would you start? Before Health Care Reform became a tangible issue on the political table, no one had a good word to say about our country's rising health and medical care costs. NO ONE, unless your a Doctor or Pharmaceutical Company, In which case I refer you to the paragraph on big business.
I imagine right now you're wondering what in hell this has to do with recycling. Well I admit I got a little off track but the point is that all of the above concern real world issues that need real world solutions. Sticking our heads in the sand and hoping the next corrupt elected official comes up with another sugar coated quick fix so we can all coast a while longer is not a solution. What it is, is delaying the inevitable and someday our children or their children will have to answer for it. Not my idea of great parenting.
This country does need health care reform, it needs welfare reform, and above all else it needs political reform. Hiding behind the party that your Dad supported is no longer a viable option. It doesn't matter what worked in their time, because the parties (and I mean all of them) don't truly represent what they did in dear old Dads time. The man in office who is there solely because the generation before put him there has become complacent and corrupt (regardless of his affiliation and what it used to mean). We as voters, protesters, providers, and parents need to pull our heads from the sand and demand an end to tolerance for corruption. Just because it's easy doesn't mean it's right.
The man that I used as an example is not the evil villain out to bring about the end of the world through pollution and smog, he is a hard working, honest and respected member of his community with strong beliefs and values. While I don't agree with all of his ideals I respect the man that he is and mean no disrespect to him in this rant. It was merely an example of one of the things that I think is wrong with our perception of the world today. Ultimately our society is designed to give us control, but in order to take that control and make a difference we have to be unified, we ALL have to stand together and demand change and we all have to be willing to roll up our sleeves and accept the challenges that WILL come with change. So in closing I'd just like to say.... SORT YOUR DAMN TRASH! .... :)
