November 5th will change the course of our future in this country.
Before I begin, I must confess, that shamefully, I am a completely irresponsible citizen. I don’t pay attention to politics, I only vote in presidential elections and even then tend to vote conservative because, I don’t bother to find out what the candidates stand for. In all honesty, I’m overwhelmed by politics. It’s so ugly and self-serving that I'm ticked off more than encouraged to learn or participate. Sad, disgraceful, ungrateful, unpatriotic and self-centered of me, I know. Obama/McCain – who am I supposed to support?
Whether we like them or we don’t… it takes a person with far bigger cojones, stamina and thick skin to run for President (much less make it to office) than ANY of us have, who bitch & moan about them. Apart from the actual job of dealing with national and world issues - they have to endure worldwide ridicule, scrutiny, slander, ripping to shreds, verbal castration and more every waking moment of every day. Not to mention having to work with the members of Congress. No matter who you are – as President – you will have a huge group of people who absolutely hate your guts and would prefer you were shot. Talk about the epitome of “can’t please all of the people all of the time.” No wonder every President ages 100 years while in office.
What an amazing country! We are free to yell, protest, lobby and even work to affect the change we want. We get to VOTE for the people we want to represent us. How sad that year after year a large percentage of people do not vote, and yet feel entitled to complain. I’m sick to death of people who are so adamantly disrespectful and rude. People who spew hatred all over everyone they encounter everywhere they go… who claim “XX is not MY President.” If you feel that strongly about something then get off your butt and run for office and see if YOU get elected!! I believe things would go a lot more smoothly and we’d actually get some good things accomplished if we’d all just SHUT UP, roll up our sleeves and try to work together.
When 9/11 happened and Katrina hit New Orleans, everyone jumped in to help - Democrats/Republicans, atheists/ believers, black/white, rich/poor – and are still helping. Stuff simply needed to get done – from picking up trash and schlepping through human waste to rebuilding and planning for the future. It’s back-breaking work that will continue for years to come. There are times of huge advancement and due to mistakes, times of regression. But it somehow gets done and it will get done – no matter how long it takes, because everyday people from all walks of life are committed.
The same principles apply to government. Sure, we may not like who gets voted to be Captain of the Team. However, once elected, he/she is running the show. We need to just do the work together. We need to figure out how to make stuff happen – starting with schlepping through the excrement and working up to planning for the future. Slinging blame keeps us spinning in circles.
With a strong solid foundation, any architect can build any style home. It can be remodeled or torn down and something completely new can be built in its place. That is beauty of what our Founding Fathers (Divinely led) established for us. They built a solid foundation. Part of that foundation was the wisdom to only allow an architect 8 years max to create. Obviously, some houses are far better built than others.
You many be thinking I'm naive or simple-minded; that I'm not considering the seriousness of our issues and maybe I am. However, I am well aware that there are fundamental moral issues that will NEVER be resolved. For the follower of Christ, there are some that we can NEVER compromise on. I understand too, that no matter what anyone says, a person's moral and foundational beliefs will ALWAYS affect their approach to everything in life.
I'm talking of the "other" things... the practical, house-cleaning things. When you clear away the arrogant need to be right, all the pomp & circumstance – I think tackling some of our problems is as simple as “just doing it” and playing nice in the sandbox. (revised)
For the first time, I actually watched something political – the Saddleback Church Civil Forum. Up to that telecast, I’ve not paid attention to a single speech or interview. Again, ignorant and irresponsible of me, I know. I was extremely skeptical and afraid that, as usual, tough questions would not be asked, issues would be glossed over, and as a Christian – core concerns would not be presented. I was pleasantly surprised. Rick Warren did an excellent job. I felt Rick and the candidates too, were gracious and candid; there wasn’t too much agenda pushing. (They ARE politicians, after all.) The candidates are very different, but I was extremely impressed with both of them.
I’m still uncertain of whom to vote for, but after watching the Civil Forum, I feel motivated to buckle down and pay attention in the coming months so that I can feel truly confident and proud to exercise my right to VOTE in November.
No matter the outcome - my prayer is that all of us, who call America home, can lower out pointing fingers and screaming voices and realize that at our core, WE ARE ALL ON THE SAME TEAM - TEAM USA - we all want this country to be a great place to live and we want it to function well. The beauty and blessing of this country is our freedom to have opposite opinions, beliefs and ways of doing things. We need to stop screaming at each other long enough to see what things we CAN tackle together and just do it! There will always be "believers" and "non-believers" this side of heaven. And so, we need each other and our opposing views to create something amazing and unique - when, where and as much as we can... for the good of this country. (revised)
Bottom line – no matter the fear or confidence; helplessness or motivation to act; anger or peace you feel… whatever emotions this pending election stirs up in you… pay attention, learn about what issues are important to you and whether Obama or McCain best represent those issues.
Then come November 5th… GET OUT THERE AND VOTE!!
No comments:
Post a Comment