Most people that read already know most of the answer to the
two questions, yet we need to start pushing the answer forward and hard to
start undoing the damage. How?
They divide us because they can and it benefits them. Who
are they? It is basically two groups, media interests and ingrained
politicians. People hear me scream we need new parties and new leadership. And
that is mainly to break up the duopoly’s hold on the American people that only
serve themselves. And the duopoly is supported by the opposing media groups
that reap financial benefits and solidifies its’ audiences.
There is a book called “Hate, Inc.” that takes a very deep
dive into the media and the history that led us to the current state of
affairs. That should be required reading for all Americans, but no one really
reads the news anymore in depth or with an open mind so that book wouldn’t help
most people at this point.
As long as the ingrained parties and politicians can use
their media allies it will be very difficult to change the status quo. Yet
breaking that up isn’t the first step. It is breaking up how they divide us so
it is a much deeper challenge.
One of our problems is that the ingrained politicians and media
use social issues to tug at our emotions to inflame our passions so we don’t
listen to the other side. It is the social issues that cannot be solved by
public policy that allow this divide to continue. Sane minds do not have to
give up their beliefs on social issues, but they need to address them in a
different manner than public policy and politics.
At this moment in time we need to concentrate our political
efforts on the basics of governing. We need to protect our border while still respecting
the dignity of human life and that really is the closest to a social issue we
should get to for now. Everything else is just better public policy like
improving education, improving social security, creating a more equitable tax
code, balancing the budget, prioritizing what is needed for the poor so they
have opportunity, protecting our country, using our secondary functions like
the Fed to battle inflation or recessions, working on better campaign laws that
allow for better participation by all instead of favoring money interests and
quite a bit more.
Outside of our politicians demonstrating respect and dignity
for each other, we need to become a better educated society to tackle our
social issues. For example right now the abortion groups and the pro life
groups are at each other’s throats because the two groups use our emotions to
separate us, create camps and one sided arguments so much so that we forget
that this is a very deep and emotional issue that shouldn’t be left to partisan
politics to decide.
We need long and deep conversations. We need to listen so
people aren’t screaming, yet as a society we are not ready to go there. We aren’t
close. And that isn’t because both sides have intense feelings and thoughts
about the matter. It is because people use those and manipulate us to benefit a
small minority of our country. And that minority is the established and
entrenched power structure in D.C. Trump was supposed to cure us of this
according to MAGA, yet in practice he only exasperated it. He inflames his base
to a whole new level of hate.
And he knew that was possible. He may not be a stable
genius, but he is a capable manipulator. And that manipulation works because
for the last thirty to forty years the Republicans and Democrats set it up.
Both sides began the long march of splitting this country socially so they
could get re-elected time and time again. If people really paid attention to what
their politicians were doing we wouldn’t have 80 year olds entrenched in D. C.
Instead they pay attention to the need to get rid of the other guy, the
evolution of gerrymandering to benefit the entrenched. The media went along
because if they picked and backed a side they got a guaranteed audience for
their profits.
All this is well documented, yet no one comes along and
splits up this madness. Even today you watch all these “independent” podcasts or
nascent news organizations and they are on one side or the other. There is no
independence. They joined a side to steal an audience not to liberate an
audience.
So I try to break this up by screaming for new parties, yet
even then sides will be drawn. My hope is that sides are drawn solely on the political
issues to get started. Our country gets back to the push me pull me of liberal
versus conservative political policy. When the economy is doing well push
forward, when it is in recession, pull back and the politicians that better
serve the need of the moment are elected. When things change and the pendulum
swings the other way, hopefully districts are broken up more evenly so the
people can elect politicians that support the next change needed. And what is
scary too many people will say that is a dream when in actuality it should be
the norm.
Breaking away from social issues dominating our political
rhetoric will help us focus on the immediate needs like inflation, affordability,
social security, healthcare and more. Politicians to get elected will have to
offer solutions the majority of our country wants instead of creating a feeding
frenzy of hate.
Social issues are important and eventually we need to work
through them. And the possibility of certain people continued to be
marginalized is a problem so the rhetoric needs respect not hate until we know enough
as a society to actually decide what if any public policy is needed. If we
learn to respect each other we may never need to force social change. I am a
conservative, yet I truly understand you cannot legislate morality. It is
something people have to understand in their heart, but what morality is correct
can even be a dangerous topic to discuss. So at this point the infamous render
under Ceasar what is Ceasar’s and render to God what is God might be something
we need to think about before we spout off who is right and wrong.
There are many things I would like to see change. I would
hope the golden rule of love God with all your heart and love your neighbor as
yourself would be first in all our hearts, but right now we just need to stop
talking, start reading, start listening and start reflecting on the few things
all of us need so the hate stops and the much needed switch to the norm can
begin.
So yeah, we need new parties 😊 and a whole bunch more.
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