Thursday, October 30, 2008

An Enduring Truth

Flowers are my favorite miracle of nature. They are like the inner-beauty that every human possesses but rarely can show. We all have a direction in society—a job, an education, a family—but these are all man-made goals and accomplishments during our time on Earth. What is most real and authentic and natural is that which God has made. Our beating hearts, our breathing lungs, our mindful sympathy and love for people, not things. What I find to be one of the biggest ironies in this world of ours is that which appears concrete and real is, in fact, the most expendable and perishable—the most non-existent. And that which one cannot see with his or her eyes, but must feel with his or her heart is what God promises will be with us for eternity. I heard a very admirable and humble priest once end his homily by saying, “For the Christian, love is all encompassing. It is the ONLY reality.” My heart leapt with joy. However, God has not only made Christians with this quality. Instead, every soul He has ever created has been created the same, and must be treated the same. Force does not defeat force. Nor does hate defeat hate. In the end it is LOVE which will conquer ALL. Because God is LOVE!

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

In My Opinion

In my opinion, it does not really matter who is voted in as president of the United States in one week. It’s hard to pick the lesser of the two evils. The common misconception among the American people is that there are core differences between the Democratic and Republican parties. The sad and discouraging truth is that politicians are…well, politicians. I will not go as far as generalizing and saying that every politician is a liar and completely self-obsessed. But I will admit that a great deal of them are in the profession for the same reason that people are in many other professions—to make money—as much of it as possible.
Take for instance, the recent $850 billion bailout proposed and granted by the U.S. Congress, which did nothing to improve or benefit anyone but the criminals that caused it, and the criminals that passed it. Although we, as a people, are definitely guilty of living above our means, there should still be a great deal of blame to be placed on the shoulders of individuals who should have foresaw the ultimate crash, but for personal financial gain, did nothing but encourage it. Let’s practice some common sense right now—many people saw a loophole, a chance to benefit greatly off of a great number of people’s misfortunes, and they grasped the opportunity—causing an enormous economic downfall, which has affected everyone in the country but the extremely wealthy. Then, when those companies began to implode due to their own follies, they begged for help to Congress, which then decided to grant them the money (our money, via taxes) to get them back on their feet. So, if I am correct, the man or woman who could not afford to pay for the house they were approved financing for, and subsequently lost, still has to pay for it, and on top of that, must additionally pay money to stabilize the very company that swindled them out of that home. I could be wrong, but I do not think any one single member of Congress lost their home because of this scam. However, each member of Congress who approved the astronomically high (with no statistical basis of how high it should be) bailout, will in turn, benefit from it. That, I guarantee!

CONGRESSMAN: Hi, Mr. Banker who promised a family of five that they could afford that four bedroom, two and a half bathroom, home in the suburbs for $300,000, even though they bring in $50,000 a year in salary.

MR. BANKER: Hi, Mr. Congressman, who has embezzled thousands, if not millions, of dollars from taxpayers on various government projects which were granted to companies with higher bidding prices, because the CEO of that company is a “close friend” of yours.

CONGRESSMAN: How’s that housing scam going for you?

MR. BANKER: Great! We’ve suckered hundreds of people into thinking they can afford these houses. You should see the look on their faces when they’re told that they’re approved for the house of their dreams.

CONGRESSMAN: But they’ll eventually be foreclosed on…it’s only a matter of time.

MR. BANKER: Not my problem. They’ll pay for the house whether they live in it or not.

CONGRESSMAN: But won’t all of those foreclosed houses eventually cripple you when no one can afford to pay for them?

MR. BANKER: Like I said, they’ll pay for the house either way. I’ve got a suitcase full of cash, or a big check—Pay to the Order of: Mr. Congressman’s re-election campaign—that says you’ll pass an $850 billion bailout to save our ass.

CONGRESSMAN: Not only that, but when the Stock Market hits near rock bottom, we can buy up all of the stocks at unbelievable discount rates. Eventually they’re bound to go up, so long as my colleagues and I keep approving taxpayer bailouts to keep the companies from going under.

MR. BANKER: Now we’re on the same page! We should take a trip to my yacht in Martinique during one of your 6 weeks of vacation time this year.

CONGRESSMAN: Sounds good. I’ll see you there.

Sometimes you have to put things into fictional dialogue to get your point across. I hope you understand now. The rich get richer and the poor get poorer. The country that we live in is not very different from Rome. Corporate America is the savage and brutal captor and possessor of all of our freedoms. We are merely slaves to that captor. We work ourselves to death to serve the most evil of forces, but make ourselves feel better by claiming we only do it to house and feed our families. That is true, and it is also very admirable and honorable. However, it is still assisting the monster. There is nothing wrong with crunching numbers as an accountant, or proofreading text for company pamphlets, or hammering nails to build the frame of a house. Like I said, those are very necessary and important things to be done. What I have a problem with is the people on top. The leaders of these companies are held to different standards than the average person on the street. On top of that, the lawmakers who are supposed to enforce and penalize these people, are often close companions of the crooks.

We place entirely too much faith and trust in who will be the next President and Vice President. We are fools for thinking that either one will make a drastic difference. If anything, nothing will change at all. I laugh at the idea that there are two parties. In reality, there is one party, with two subdivisions. Every single time a third party has tried to rise in power and notoriety, the Republicans and Democrats have immediately began working together to crush that party. That does not sound very American to me. A man or woman who is truly devoted to the American dream and ideals set up by the founders, would welcome and encourage as many different political parties as possible. Our current leaders are not leaders at all. They are not free-thinkers, whether Democrat or Republican. They are puppets and followers, working together to ensure themselves employment every 2 to 4 to 6 years. There are over 20 former U.S. Congressmen and Congresswomen who are convicted felons, but still receive federal pensions. Most notably Senator Stevens from Alaska who has been recently convicted but will receive $122,000 annually. Think about that. If you are a member of Congress you can commit a federal crime and, despite spending time in jail, you will still receive annual compensation (taxpayer based) for time spent conducting criminal activity.

I hope and pray that a drastic change will take place in our country, but to be completely honest, I consider myself a child of God first and foremost. I do not think God prefers one man-made nation over another. I believe we are obnoxious and foolish for thinking so. There are a great number of good people in this country, and there is a great number of daily works that these people do, which makes God proud. But if we do not begin to rise as the people, in revolutionary form, against our oppressors—to create a multi party system, we will all suffer from it. That, I guarantee.