I was born and raised in the deep South. I now live in a major, fairly liberal, US city. I relate to both “The liberal Coastals” and “The Conservative Fly Overs” because I’ve lived and worked as/among both. I see both sides. I have dear intelligent friends who vote Republican and I have dear intelligent friends who vote Democrat. Lately they don’t get along so well. And that’s the problem…
Government should not be a team sport.
Let me say that again, because that is the central thesis of this blog: Government should not be a team sport.
What do I mean by that? I mean that government (federal, state, and local) has become entirely about winning for your team (your party, your side of the aisle, cons vs. libs, red vs. blue). Elected officials don't act in the best interest of the people who elected them. They act in the best interest of themselves and their party. We've come to the point that even when both parties agree on a new bill in congress, members of one party will vote against it just so the other party can’t take credit for it. The result: gridlock.
I will do my best to keep this blog focused on the problems associated with my central thesis and its causes from both Republicans and Democrats. I will do so in simple terms, in plain English, not Washington Speak. And believe me there is plenty to talk about. My hope is to inspire readers to stop thinking of the other side as the enemy. The posts are not intended to be in-depth journalism or scholarly treatises. Trust me, I am far from scholarly.
I hope to inspire my readers (if there are any) to listen to the other "team" with an open mind. I think you'll find that your opinions overlap more than you think. At the very least you might understand the other perspective and realize that people holding different views aren't all E.G.D.s (Evil Greedy Devils). Some of our elected officials may be evil, but not the entire 50% of our country who vote for them.
Quite simply I suspect I will piss off someone from the Left AND from the Right in just about every post. One of the people I upset may be my boss or a parent of one of my children's school mates, or even a friend. Please know that I don't intend to offend anyone. I don't plan to be THAT controversial, but these days you never know what might set someone off. When you wade into the topic of politics people have passionate beliefs.
One more thing - this is not my job. I don't make any money from it. So the posts may come slowly. I apologize in advance.
In staying with the team sport theme, for now I'll go by the moniker "Coach."
So thanks for reading,
COACH.
"What has worried me for some time, even before the 2016 election, is the inability of our political leadership to resolve their differences and to come together and compromise in making decisions that advance our economy and society. Why is this my biggest worry? Because, at the end of the day, the most important determinant of a nation’s national security is the health of its economy and its society. Period. End of story." - Michael Morrel, former acting CIA Director