Elections

I have been a political independent all my life.  I don’t believe that the party agendas of either the Democrats or the Republicans are correct prescriptions for anything!  I have been particularly disenchanted in recent years with the GOP,  since it morphed into a “fearless-leader-who-can-do-no-wrong” cult around Donald Trump.  Much of what they claim is debunked Qanon conspiracy theories.  The rest is Trump making egregiously false claims about those who oppose him.

That resembles nothing so much as how the Nazis morphed into a “fearless-leader-who-can-do-no-wrong” cult around Adolf Hitler somewhere about 1922 or 1923,  and we all know where that led!   Even the egregious lying about almost everything is quite similar.  Trump is his own Dr. Goebbels!  Plus,  there are several younger “Trump-wannabees” waiting in the wings,  boding ill for some time to come.  The threat continues after Trump is gone!

Both party agendas for economic policy are wrong,  precisely because they are fixed prescriptions,  when the requirements and circumstances vary wildly with time!  That variation is sort-of erratically periodical.  We call it the “business cycle”.  

But for whatever reasons,  there are “good times” and there are “bad times”.  What history teaches is that you run balanced budgets during the “good times” and bank the surpluses.  Why?  Government must spend well beyond its means during the “bad times”,  because no one else will!  And you rack up less debt to pay off,  if you have some savings to spend first!   How simple is that? 

The fatal problem:  if government does not hugely spend in “bad times”,  the economy grinds to a complete halt,  requiring a decade or more to recover!  Such was the Great Depression.  And,  it recurred in 1937,  with a politics-driven premature cut in spending!  It took the massive spending run-up to World War 2,  to finally end that depression!  We indeed paid most of that debt off,  after the war,  and fairly quickly!  It just takes time.  And it takes self-discipline on the part of our politicians to do their jobs for the good of the country!  Something we have not seen in decades!

The Democrats historically tended to want to spend too much during the good times,  although in recent decades they actually did better at balancing the budget than the Republicans (example:  Bill Clinton).  The Republicans historically did not want to spend,  even in the “bad times”,  thus doing severe damage during downturns,  which is why the Great Depression was as bad as it was. 

That stereotype has changed in recent decades,  as the GOP actually contributed more toward the current ballooning national debt than the Democrats,  with way too many tax cuts that favored-more the rich,  who really didn’t need them,  but who donate to campaigns!  How corrupt is that?  And both parties ballooned it in recent decades,  with wars financed by credit instead of Congressional appropriations!  When the Constitution requires appropriations! 

The trend has been,  for decades now,  that politicians misbehave,  prioritizing personal wealth and party advantage,  far above the good of the country!  That trend has become ever more severe as the decades roll by.  I consider that behavior a violation of their oaths of office!  And,  I think such violations need to be criminalized,  but that’s just me!  (I still consider the similar oath I took upon entering the Navy,  binding upon me,  even today.  It had no end date!  Neither does theirs!)

Just before he died,  my grandfather told me “the tools for good government were tar,  feathers,  guns,  and ropes”.  He told me that in his day,  they still used those tools,  and they had decent government.  He also told me that in my dad’s day,  we-the-people let the judges talk us out of using those tools for good government.  He then told me that the result of this,  in my day,  was that we had lousy government!  As far as I’m concerned,  he was exactly right!  He died some 6 decades ago,  and the problem is far worse now! 

The politicians generally corrupt very quickly now,  after only a term or two in office.  There are very few exceptions!  You-the-electorate have always had term limits:  just vote for the “other person”!  It doesn’t really matter who the “other person” is,  you really cannot do worse,  once the incumbent has corrupted!  But you might do better with the “other person”!   So,  play the odds is my advice!

And,  Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens) agrees with me!  He said “Politicians are like diapers.  They need to be changed often,  and for exactly the same reason”.  With the 2-term limit for Presidents,  this is now more of a problem with whom we send to the House and Senate.

Please do something about this,  my fellow citizens!

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The time to dispose of rotting orange things is certainly this November!