05.18.2010
Republicans focus on the individual and hold an attitude of “to each his own.” There’s no room for sharing and the desire to make money partners with the belief that one should keep the money for him/herself. As a result of this, Republicans are geniuses at organizing and monitoring (their) money. On the flipside of that, you have Democrats who believe in sharing and hold an attitude that “it’s our duty to help.” And when it comes to money, Democrats suck at organizing and monitoring it.
Republicans have also aligned themselves with fringes of society who insist on controlling what goes on in people’s homes when it is convenient for them: for example, gay marriage and abortion. On these points, Democrats believe government should have no say. Republicans want all the public services that government should provide: fire departments, good public schools, and a police department. But they don’t want to pay for it (so they set up systems to make the poor pay for it). Democrats want the same things and don’t mind paying for it – but, let’s remember, they have no idea how to shuffle around the money correctly and so they contribute to the passage of rules, laws, incentives, etc. that, in turn, make the poor pay for the roads, schools and PD. Thus, two different systems and structures that come to the same result.
As this ridiculous song and dance plays out between the two parties, we have serious issues bubbling within society that no one is paying attention to. In Sunday’s Los Angeles Times, California Section, front page, a headline reads: Child Abuse Tips Slow to Be Resolved. As government fights and makes cuts to social programs (and I agree that there are frivolous ones), children are still getting abused and no one is taking the proper steps to ensure that these children are taken care of. Is it because the children aren’t our children? Is it because our hard-earned dollar shouldn’t go towards someone else’s child? Is it that fundraising for the next campaign with slogans like “Children are Our Future” is more important than to actually take steps to follow through on the slogan? Is it because that so much abuse occurs in the lower-income bracket that “these” children don’t matter?
I was once a staunch Republican. eagerly awaiting to vote in my first presidential election in 1996. I also headed the call of my Catholic education where I was taught that helping those less fortunate (like Jesus did) is actually a benefit to myself if not for any reason but to feel good. Eventually the skeleton of what Republicans stood for and focused on began to conflict with my beliefs. The problem is that I don’t see any party really helping anyone but themselves and, despite now belonging to the Green Party for close to 10 years, the US has no place for 3rd party voices.
Regardless of one’s political aspirations, I don’t understand why it’s so easy to so passionately fight for the protection of an unborn fetus under the auspices of “protecting children” but then completely forget about the child once he/she is born. Both Democrats and Republicans only pretend to care. Republicans claim to care on the fetus level and Democrats claim to care once the baby is born but both sides care mostly in pleasing the upper classes that will keep getting them elected. And those people will always have the money to hide their indiscretions. A child who must feel the pain of a hot iron, feel starvation, or suffer through the smacking around of a parent/guardian isn’t as important as making money. And that, my friends, has become the only thing that matters.
