The Final Battle

The Democratic Party today is built on a mountain of lies.  The greatest lie being told to the American people is that Democrats are the moderates and Republicans are the extremists.  If this Democratic Party and its leaders are moderate, then so were Vladimir Lenin, Joseph Stalin and Mao Tse-tung.  The Obama regime is doing its best to unilaterally gain control of everything in America - our commercial and industrial base; the distribution of information through the media; the educational system; health care; our individual behavior - all while silencing the opposition.  If that is not the definition of autocratic dictatorship, what is?

For the American dream to survive that has to change.  We must take the country back from the charlatans who know how to lie, cheat and steal to get elected but are clueless about what economic philosophy and policies create prosperity.  We must cast out the snake-oil salesmen who are adept at reading grandiose but unworkable plans off a teleprompter, but are totally void of common sense and illiterate in mathematics.  We must get rid of arrogant con men with no experience in the real world and elect leaders with knowledge, integrity and competence.

Unfortunately, the chances of any of that happening are slim and none.  The guilty are in charge of the process and not about to give it up.  Most elected officials and political appointees can't manage a port-a-potty, let alone a vast bureaucracy.  They have no clue how to create efficiencies or cut unnecessary costs.  No wonder government spending is out of control.  And any reformer with some integrity and competence who does come along is vilified, ostracized and beaten to a pulp by the major media storm troopers.  We have reached the point of no return, unless we somehow manage to make substantial meaningful reforms to our electoral process.

The most obvious and important reform would be the implementation of term limits.  Everyone knows the majority of Americans are in favor of term limits.  The current system of unlimited terms for both the Senate and the House allows congressmen and women to spend their entire time in office campaigning for the next election, i.e., lying about their accomplishments and demonizing their opponents rather than doing the jobs they were elected to do.  They do not read the legislation they vote on and depend on their huge staffs and the most generous lobbyists to determine which way to vote to further their own interests, not their constituents.

The only viable option to enact term limits is to rely on Article V of the Constitution, which provides for the right of the legislatures of two-thirds of the states to call a convention for the purpose of proposing amendments to the Constitution.  Amendments produced at the convention would become law if ratified by three-quarters of the states.  It certainly would not be easy since Washington would unleash the full fury of its media attack dogs, but it is the only way to bypass the inert and irresponsible members of the Congressional club.

Furthermore, in my humble opinion, each elected official including the president should be limited to one term in the office they are elected to serve.  Six years for the president, eight years in the Senate and four years in the House of Representatives would give each enough time to influence legislation and provide the proper representation their constituents deserve rather than wasting time and money by constantly campaigning for re-election.  Perhaps half way through the term each elected official should face a vote of confidence from his constituents to let them know if the voters are satisfied with his or her performance.  If they don't get a favorable vote of at least 40%, they're gone.  Each person would have a potential 18 years in elected office if they were competent enough to make it all the way from the House through the presidency.  There are more than 315 million people in America, more than enough to come up with 536 fresh faces every few years.  In fact, it wouldn't hurt to limit Supreme Court Justices to one twenty year term.  They are not infallible either.

Another reform that makes a lot of sense would be to introduce certain requirements to be eligible to vote in national elections.  Democracy works only when the people voting for their representatives possess a basic education as well as an understanding of our system of government and the ramifications of the important issues those elected officials will be debating.  Perhaps folks who have no idea who or what they are voting for other than what a favorite television talking airhead or popular celebrity tells them should not be voting.  People who do not take the time to understand the issues and each candidate's position are doing the country a great disservice if they step in the voting booth.  Voters should focus on the substance of a candidate's knowledge, experience and competence, not personal popularity or skill in reading from a teleprompter.

A diploma from an accredited American high school or the equivalent would not be too much too ask in order to be eligible to vote.  Nor would requiring a voter to be a U.S. citizen for a minimum of five years and to maintain residence during that time.  That would ensure that only those who have a genuine and vested interest in the policies of our national government are allowed to influence it.  And how anyone could oppose a photo ID card to be eligible to vote is beyond comprehension.  Democrats tell us some don't have the opportunity to obtain a photo ID and are therefore deprived of voting.  Bullshit!  Photo ID's are required for everything from opening a bank account and driving a car to using a credit card and applying for welfare.  Only those who are intent on cheating by getting illegal immigrants, felons, dead people and pets names past the voter registrar could oppose a photo ID.

Campaign finance reform is a must if Americans are to have free and fair elections.  A basic underlying principle of democracy is that no one should be able to buy an election.  Buying an election is what happens when special interest groups are allowed to spend unlimited amounts to promote their narrow, selfish interests at the expense of the general public.  Money should not be the determining factor in public policy.  Lobbyists should not have the ability to legally bribe congressmen and women to support the lobbyists cause.

The state primary system in America is an absurd travesty.  Usually only a small percentage of eligible voters participate, typically the most rabid, extreme and radical from each party.  That means the nut cases often determine who the party's standard bearers will be.  The national conventions are nothing more than ultra-expensive, over-indulged, gluttonous, drunken orgies that cater to incumbents and national party leaders.  Focusing on qualifications and policy rather than pomp, propaganda and celebrity worship would produce better national leaders.

It wouldn't hurt to have more than two political parties participating in our system of government.  Voters need to have multiple choices to choose from, not just bad and worse.  We must grow out of the mindless blind faith to a particular party and focus our attention on the quality of individual candidates.  The majority of democracies in the developed world have four or more parties that have meaningful participation in government.  The more viewpoints involved in political debate would create more responsive and effective government.  No one party could dominate the debate and railroad their agenda into law.  Rational discussion and compromise would result in coalitions between parties forming on each individual issue to produce legislation more in the interests of the general public.

The founding fathers, and historically most Americans, strongly believed in liberty, justice, national security, private enterprise and free markets.  Government requiring us to live our lives as it demands and taxing us to implement unworkable programs and policies that we don't want is not liberty.  Bailing out those who are responsible for financial and economic collapse at the expense of those who suffered the consequences is not justice.  Unilateral disarmament while our adversaries grow stronger is not national security.  Government imposing layers of rules and regulations on commercial and industrial enterprises is not capitalism.  We are headed in the wrong direction.  We need election reforms that allow the informed, the competent and the conscientious to choose the leaders we send to Washington, people who will represent our interests rather than their own.  But I am not going to hold my breath waiting for that to happen.

There is a reason the majority of us who have been around a while aggressively oppose this president and his policies.  Wisdom is gained through experience.  In the past that meant something.  But now the younger generations, racist minorities and lots of brainless women would rather believe the empty promises of an ideologically driven totalitarian and his media brainwashing machine than recognize reality.  We may not have gulags, political prisoners, re-indoctrination camps, or convenient disappearances yet - as far as we know.  After all, the 'progressives' have only been in charge for five years.  But this is how it starts.

Finally, I think it is time for me to give up and remove myself from political commentary.  One thing there is way too much of in this world is unsolicited advice and opinions.  I am part of the problem.  Besides, it is a waste of time.  As long as any moron who doesn't have a clue is allowed to vote, and with no term limits nor any accountability for the corrupt cretins that are in office, we're screwed.  If Americans want to allow the Democrats to destroy our country, then so be it.  The country elects the people it deserves.