Islamic State coming here, beheadings in Oklahoma, Russia invading Ukraine, Hamas versus Israel, thousands of children flooding into USA, veterans being allowed to die in VA hospitals, U.S. soldiers fighting Ebola instead of Islamic State, IRS persecuting conservatives, AFT selling guns to cartels, U.S. ambassador abandoned to Benghazi terrorists, Detroit bankrupt, Ferguson MO rioting and murdering, thousands losing health insurance, percent of Americans working lowest since 1978 — What else can go wrong?
Well, how about floods in Arizona, drought in California, earthquakes, volcanoes erupting, and millions of people in refugee camps? And the list can go on.
The cumulative effect of all these events is rather daunting. Not everything going wrong these days is the fault of government. In spite of all the wailing about climate change, for example, there is not much anybody can do about droughts, blizzards, hurricanes, and earthquakes, except clean up after them. But people do run the government.
Unfortunately, the government is responsible for an alarming number of these problems. And the public is watching. The Gallup Poll measuring satisfaction with the (federal) government hit its lowest in history in August at 19 percent versus 81 percent dissatisfied. This satisfaction level broke the record low set at the height of Watergate (20 percent)
Now, we find out that this army of crazies, whom we were told by our president had been defeated, are beheading Westerners on camera, killing thousands of Christians, conquering Syria and Iraq — and coming here! Not only that, but our huge spy network, electronic and otherwise, apparently couldn’t convince the president that this was coming, and now the Pentagon can’t convince him about the obvious ways to run a war. In fact, this president didn’t even bother to attend 60 percent of his President’s Daily Briefs (PDB).
And it wasn’t long ago that the House of Representatives got snookered by the president and Senate majority leader into closing down the entire federal government. We are witnessing the U.S. government being run by “The Gang that Couldn’t Shoot Straight”! And they are running it into the ground.
This combination of a president who campaigns all the time instead of tending the store (although the decisions he makes in the store haven’t turned out all that well); plus a Congress who would rather fight each other than pass laws; plus a chief justice who caves to the president when a sixth of the U.S. economy is at stake, makes a pretty sad picture.
Until now, many of these dissentions, legal, moral and political, seemed more interesting to those inside the Beltway than to ordinary Americans. But now, we are suddenly facing mortal threats — from terrorists, epidemics, foreign enemies, state-sponsored crimes (especially cyber warfare) — and we are getting scared. All the mistakes and miscues the government has been making for the past few years are catching up with us like a sudden tornado. It turns out that government is important after all.
Right now, facing these threats to our life, safety and freedom, Americans turn to their government to protect them. We need to trust our leaders to do the right things, make the right decisions to meet the threats and conquer our enemies, both human and viral. Lack of trust can lead to panic. But trust relies on the competence of those to be trusted. In the face of all these problems, Americans look at their government as a bunch of incompetents, who have shown themselves more concerned about the next election than about the things that matter to the rest of us.
All of this leaves us in the unenviable position of having to plead with our leaders to start doing their job and taking care of us. No more leading from behind. No more shutting down the government. No more Senate stonewalling the House. No more going home, leaving Washington, just when we are entering another war.
Yes, Franklin Roosevelt finally ended the Depression by going to war, but that is not the preferred process. President Obama has finally understood that America’s position in the world depends on our economic strength. So, let’s take care of that too: Start supporting instead of stifling the emerging energy boom (sign the Keystone Pipeline deal and open up offshore and federal lands to drilling), reform the tax code, make Obamacare optional, balance the budget and, in the immortal words of President Ronald Reagan, “Get the government off our backs! “
In the meantime, we have some foreign policy issues to resolve: Knock out ISIS with overwhelming force (the Powell doctrine), call Vladimir Putin’s bluff by ordering ICBMs in Poland, Romania and the Baltics (ordering would probably be enough) , pursue the two nation strategy with Israel and Iran (the real combatants), and make a deal with Germany and other EU countries to supply their natural gas — to list some possible moves.
Of all the crises America faces today, the most serious may be the incompetence of our government. A very chilling thought.
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