They Just Don't Get It

Did the Russians intervene in our electoral process by attempting to hack both parties information processing equipment? Yes. Did it have any effect? Yes. Did they hack election machinery to alter votes? No. Is there evidence of vote tampering? Not by the Russians; Detroit is an example. Has anyone said the information which was released was false? No, in fact, the Democrats haven’t been asked that by those in the press corps and have not denied their veracity when given the opportunity while conducting interviews. Ms. Clinton’s private server wasn’t hacked by the Russians so that information isn’t even in question.

So, where are we with all this hand wringing and intimidation of electoral college electors by George Soros (not an American citizen) funded groups. Let’s remember Mr. Trump is not yet President; Mr. Obama is President. The intelligence community will not come before the appropriate congressional committees to present their evidence on the extent of the hacking, though they have been invited. President Obama could present his evidence to the American people in a nationwide address. No entity within the Democrat controlled executive branch of government will come forward and actually present their information. Until they present the information, these groups are just a bunch of noise attempting to interfere in our electoral process but in a different way than the Russians. Both are funded from outside the United States of America.

It is time for us to come together and accept the result of the election. Mr. Trump will be our next President. Democrats must do what they wanted Republicans to do if Ms. Clinton had won; accept the election results and let’s get down to the business of getting our country to be representative of all of us.

Trump Steps So Far

I have enjoyed the consternation from the political elite of both sides of the political spectrum as President Elect Trump has met with a variety of people from different backgrounds and ideologies. They seem to forget he isn't an ideologue; he is a pragmatic businessman. He doesn't have political baggage or ties which can back him into a corner and hinder his strategy. He isn't beholden to any political or business special interests and he promised to be the President of all Americans. He is listening to everyone and isn't shutting any doors or burning any bridges. He is doing what must be done before making a decision; that little thing called critical thinking which is so lacking in today's America.

The people who voted for Mr. Trump are tired of politicians and the stale rhetoric and positions from all the people belonging to the political establishment of either party. The mouths open and the same ideas are pronounced with changes to the semantics but not the substance. Their bottom line politics are essentially what they have been, and what people have been seeking solutions for since time began. Mr. Trump comes with none of that because he isn't someone who has a political history of stands on issues. He can cast a net for information and opinion from every quarter, which is a good thing. It is the politicians of the establishment in both major parties which have gotten our nation into the divided and indebted state it is in today.

Both sides practice racist identity politics. They each try to divide us into different camps according to our ethnicity, sexual orientation, social, or economic status. They try to tell us one group is getting this particular little goody and so this other group has to fight for their little group as does the next little group. It never ends and does nothing but continue to alienate and make us suspicious of one another. We start forgetting we are all in this together and the law and rules have to apply to every individual American the same. If it doesn't, none of us are safe from being singled out at some point. We cannot make exceptions for adherence to the rules just because it might be an individual in the group we identify ourselves with who is being held accountable. We are all equally accountable before the law.

This means if you protest and start destroying property you must be held accountable. If someone from your group breaks the immigration law, they must be held accountable be they an employer or someone who didn't enter the country legally. It doesn't matter the history of a hundred or hundreds of years ago; the law of today is applicable to today and anything else is noise meant to confuse the issue. We are a nation of laws and not of men for this very reason. We are one people from many different backgrounds who have certain inalienable rights from birth which are codified in our Constitution. This Constitution must mean what it says because if it doesn't, if it is indeed a living document which can be construed however the current political climate desires, our most basic freedoms can be brushed away with a 5 to 4 vote of the Supreme Court. We are already beginning to see this happen. Your deeply held belief could be next if you fall out of favor with the political elite.

It is why it is so important Mr. Trump continue to do what he is currently doing. Meet with everyone, even those he may not agree with at present. Hear every idea, challenge established philosophy and policy, push back against conventional government bureaucratic thinking from those who have been in their positions through many administrations (it isn't as if they have this great track record). Ultimately Mr Trump will have to make a decision, when he does he must move forward with and implement without hesitation.

As he implements his strategy he must do so transparently and lay it out before the American people without the filter of the journalistic establishment, which has proven to be untrustworthy and with an agenda. He must do it outside the established political elite as they have become entrenched and only concerned with protecting their individual power. He must call out those who are duplicitous. He must acknowledge those who are helpful. He must go to the people; they are his greatest asset. Lay his case out to the citizenry and use the army which got him elected. They are the ones who got him elected and who only want one nation undivided which is fair to all its citizens and each is truly measured by the "content of their character".

A Beginning

We have just come through a very contested and divisive presidential campaign which has defined the differences in our country in pretty stark terms. We could look at this as the beginning of the end of the United States of America which we love or as the beginning of a dialogue which must be no holds barred, frank, straightforward and without concern for feelings and emotion. We cannot afford to ignore these issues or sugar coat the challenges to protect my or your feelings any longer. Politically correct dialogue must become a thing of the past; as must identity politics. There should be one identity, American.

Why must there just be an American identity? Well, the simple truth is we have allowed politicians to use those separate identities to divide us and appeal to our self-interest. We segregate ourselves in these artificial ways and allow special incentives to be given to us in tax breaks, set asides, or preferences for different things. We do not consider what would be best for all of us or how much it will cost someone else; and it will cost someone else because resources are finite and there are no free lunches.

We have allowed ourselves to be divided ethnically, by age, by income, by social standing. Social Security is used to divide us by age. The Democrats tell the old that their “benefits” will be cut if Republicans are in office. The Republicans tell those who are working about the percentage of the budget which go to Social Security payments and that the Social Security Trust Fund is going to be bankrupt. There is truth in all those statements, but also lies of omission.

The Social Security Trust Fund will become insolvent because of the population bubble which is fast approaching. But if the Government under both parties hadn’t been using the fund to borrow against because they won’t hammer out a budget which makes the Government live within its means, the fund would be solvent.

We the people are also to blame for the state of the Social Security Trust Fund because we expect government to be our Daddy. We think we deserve some kind of tax break, refund, or government service which we don’t think we should have to pay for or we don’t require our lawmakers to come up with a solution which will make it fiscally responsible. As citizens we have to be honest with ourselves and understand these things don’t just magically appear; they are going to have to be paid for by someone in the form of taxes or fees.

Here are some of the questions you should ask yourself when pondering these things. How much of your earned money are you willing to give away to fund someone else’s lifestyle? Why should someone fund the lifestyle you desire when you won’t do it for yourself? Why are you entitled to any part of someone else’s paycheck? Are your wants more important than someone else’s? Why should you be immune to the unexpected turns of life? Why aren’t you more responsible in your budgeting? Why aren’t you saving for those unexpected consequences? What are your real beliefs, morals, and ethics? Are you voting according to them? If not, why aren’t you? Are you responsible for what people did 5 or 6 generations ago? If not, why do you even entertain the notion of reparations? If a government program meant to alleviate poverty still has families on the program after 4 generations, why does it still exist? Let’s just start with these questions and go from there.