We Need a Solution

Making fun of our president is really fun. I would be lying if I said I didn’t enjoy it. Showcasing the hypocrisy of the Trump administration and their lies is something that is a daily feature on many of our timelines. While it can be fun, informative, stressful, and disheartening all at the same time, we cannot lose site of one thing:

Pointing out the problem is not the same as identifying a solution.

We all need to be identifying (local, state, federal) candidates, legislation, like minded groups, initiatives and individuals and supporting them with our ideas, time, and campaign / nonprofit donations so that we can get our communities, states, and country back on track.

That is the solution.

The Jokes on Trump

I must admit, I enjoy mocking our “president” but the fact remains that no matter how many clapbacks to his Twitter rants, he still is a very dangerous man sitting in the highest office of the most powerful county on this planet (universe for those who believe there is no life on other planets).

While humor is always helpful in stressful situations; action to remove said stress is extremely important. For those who believe that Trump’s policies are dangerous to individual freedoms, individual and collective prosperity as well as harm our environment and destroy our public education system; you have choices to make.

You can choose to be non-political and continue to be a recipient of whatever the American political systems spits out.

Or

You can choose to get politically active in your communities. Being independent is great, but if you want to make change you will need to pick a side – Democrat or Republican. The reality is we live in a two party system. The two parties control pretty much ever election system in this country (federal, state, and local) so if you want to change the system that allowed a “Trump” (or chump) to rise to power then you will need to work from within the established system.

The time to act is now. Local political parties are starving for your skills, abilities and leadership. Elected officials need to hear your voice. And YOUR community needs to stand up and take control of its political destiny.

Jokes are fun but once we finish laughing there is much work to do.

Ted Cruz Ends Historic Presidential Run

Ted Cruz formally named Carly Fiorina as his vice presidential running mate on Wednesday, April 27, 2016.  Ted Cruz formally announced that he would be “suspending” his campaign on Monday May 3, 2016 after Donald J. Trump’s landslide Republican Primary victory in Indiana.  Why go thru all of the trouble of picking a running mate just to throw in the towel a week later?

Cruz could have done bad all by himself. This tea party darlin’ who was disliked by members of Congress and mostly everyone else in America who wasn’t a member of the team party,  pretty much had no shot at winning the Presidency. Why did he have to drag Fiorina, a woman who seems to catch losses at every turn (CEO of HP, Adviser to Sen John McCain’s 2008 Presidential Campaign, 2010 California Senate Campaign, and 2016 Presidential Run) back into the presidential campaign spotlight creating a thus far Republican Presidential Primary win challenged dynamic duo.

Team Lose never had a chance;  however the question is whether Cruz ever thought they did?

Is the US Political System Rigged?

Simple answer? No

The US political system is a participation based system. Groups that participate benefit. Those that do not participate do not benefit. In the early days of our country only white male landowners had a voice in the political process. If you weren’t white, a male, nor owned land you were SOL. So blacks and other people of color as well as women fought for and received a place at the table from a voting perspective.

Participation is much more than just voting. Voting is the bare minimum. Participation includes engaging elected officials on needed legislation as well as following up with elected officials on campaign promises. Participation includes joining like-minded groups and using group leverage to keep elected officials honest.

The problem with participation is this:

First, the percentage of the population that participates is very small. There are far more non-participants yelling that the system is rigged who don’t see that their non-participation is the reason the politics does not work in their favor. 

Secondly, there are participant groups that are a few members short of the numbers needed to achieve their like-minded goals. That lends to frustration that can cause the participation rolls to drop.

So the key to benefitting from the US political system is knowing that power is in the hands of those with the numbers. Get active. Join a political group. Participate.