Tag: Politics

Shrew U: I’m a Junkie…

Junkie – noun – a person with a compulsive habit or obsessive dependency on             something (Google Dictionary)

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I like watching news shows on TV and listening to news shows on the radio.  Typically it’s how I start and end my days.  I am much more drawn to news commentary programs on the radio than I am to music while I am working or driving in my car.  It takes a really good sitcom or other entertaining show to kick me out of my evening FOX News or CNN habit.  I suppose I would have to categorize myself as a news “junkie” because if I am away from it for too long I feel out of sorts. I think I like news because it affirms for me that the world still exists regardless of humanity’s imperfections and the earthly disasters.

Last week I was following the hearings in Congress concerning Facebook and whether this company intentionally used its platform to stifle conservative thought, sell third party information, and direct a mostly liberal culture on its users who, knowingly or not, were used in a game of persuasion.  Is this persuasive behavior a new phenomenon?  I think not.  After all it is human nature to try to control outcomes which is exactly what these platforms attempt to do…I wish they would just get real about it!

Our Founders knew about this tendency of control which is why they specifically created our government to have checks and balances.  A tyrannical President can’t remain in power long when you incorporate a term limit, consistently elect representatives to direct legislation, and enact a judiciary to interpret the constitutionality of laws.  But what do corporations have to limit their control?

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Corporations have a board of directors, shareholders, a workforce and consumers.  All too often shareholders are caught up in a game of chance, and “risky business” is perpetuated from the top in order to increase profits.  Unless you are carefully looking at your retirement portfolio, you too are caught up in this game of chance, which means that if you are an employee and/or a consumer of the product or service, you really don’t want this house of cards to tumble.  We are all “junkies” to the system!

Even the conservative commentary queens Diamond and Silk are in the game, making their living by using a corporation like Facebook to increase their viewership.  I guess their popularity is not enough for Facebook to worry about removing them from the FB platform…Does this mean that Facebook is “too big to fail” and not too concerned about their profits falling by pulling conservative viewership?  Consider the hubris of removing conservative free speech and reducing the profitability of the Diamond and Silk brand…We are all losers when this control of free speech exists.

Back to the NEWS>>> So what is it with “fake news”?  Well, by using the above logic we can see that we get our news from organizations that run as corporations.  These organizations are caught up in this game of chance too.  Decisions from the top are made to increase their profitability.  Viewership is important, but only because of ratings.  Therefore, if you give the viewer what they “want” then you succeed.  And what does the viewer want?  I don’t think many of the news organizations care because what I see is simply salaciousness, intrigue, teasers and shock.  Anything but actual and complete facts…but that doesn’t sell!

So here we are in this crazy world of our making.  We have bought into it because money makes the world go round as they say and it is habit forming.  Disengaging will cause numerous repercussions, but we must plug back into reality when we can.  Consider your  local community as the best place to begin.  As a civic leader in my own community I can attest to that.  And, in my small business my work makes me meet personally with my customers…My responsibilities can’t be hidden by corporate layers.

Watch the news with discernment, keep an eye on your investments, and use social media cautiously.  Oh, and shop local 😉

The Shrew View: Of the Extreme Fringe

Party platforms only define party principles, not rules or laws. 

 

The Shrew blog focuses primarily on the human capacity for emotional maturity, openness as a condition toward wholeness, fortitude and humility.  The application of this human capacity is what I call the Female Principle (FP).  The Shrew blog attempts to show how the FP can strengthen all human relationships.

Today I would like to point out the absurdity of the Republican vs Democrat showdown in Washington D.C.  When did our representatives come to believe that their constituents want to dwell on the extreme fringe of each of these parties?  I don’t care if our President is Donald Trump or Donald Duck, representative government is not about the parties, it is about the people that they represent who are diverse in many ways.  Party platforms only define party principles, not rules or laws.

In my I’m Shrewd post of February 3rd I attempted to point out how liberals are doing their best to slander conservatives as evil.  I contend that when either side is focused on elevating their platform as the only path to America’s solutions we all lose.  For instance, during the Obama administration I observed a very liberal progressive agenda formulated by the Democrat run majority Congress.  Don’t get me wrong, I like progress.  In fact our country has been continually busting out of its tyrannical shell since the Revolutionary War.  But the American Dream is not about progressing government managed benefits as in the Democrat ideas of universal health care, government funded higher education and unrestricted welfare.  These seem like courageous acts until you discover that once government is in control, taxation increases and private funds dry up leading to job loss and wage stagnation.

The Republican ideas are no better.  For example during the Bush administration Wall Street regulators were not doing their jobs.  Oversite on banks especially where mortgages were concerned was severely lacking.  The conservative idea of everyone owning their own home was a farce.  Not everyone is prepared to own a home especially when banks intentionally poison the fiscal well.  “Fast” money, just like “free” stuff leads to consequences for the working class and cause the rich to get richer and the poor to get poorer.  A shared principle for both parties and all Americans could be this: “People of all backgrounds are free to actualize their own successes through a culture of emotional maturity and fortitude (FP).”

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Washinton D.C. shows us time and again that their smoke screen is unreliable.  Law makers must have humility and openness as a condition toward wholeness (FP). People and not parties are best equipped to handle daily struggles which are necessary in personal growth and freedom to achieve.  The Federal Government simply needs to provide the clear oversight to allow ingenuity to take place at the local level.  And people at the local level must advocate for each other with love and community support.

The President is a person elected for a short time to protect and uphold our democratic principles.  The Congress represents state’s rights and ensures civil protections.  Our states are incubators of innovation for all their residents.  And we the people  live out our dreams in relation to our community goals.  It works when we work together.

Let’s be a nation of ideas that reinforce our strong work ethic, and move away from childish partisan politics that stir our emotions.  It’s the only way forward…

I’m Shrewd: On Polarized Governance

“…dispel ignorance and cooperatively create solutions.” – The Shrew

I would have to say that most Americans enjoy living simple lives that do not involve much thought on politics.  I too was amoung that dynamic for a very long time.  The closest I got to anything political was the voting booth during election time.  I considered my vote to be an educated vote.  For the record, I am undeclared but occasionally will pick a party to be able to vote in a primary.  When I became a City Councilor, I was happy that the candidates ran as nonpartisan members of the community.   This experience gave me a clearer picture of how an average person can have impact with economic and social issues of importance.  I have since gone on to volunteer as president of a Main Street board as well as hold positions on the Economic Development Commission and the Transit Committee amoung other things.

Today’s polarized governance at the Federal level seems to me to be a far cry from what most Americans want.  We can accept that a binary political machine is the one that exists for practical purposes, however, the lack of middle ground that is needed for solving national issues is currently unacceptable. Why is this polarization happening?  I think it is because the Democrat side thinks they are the only party that can act morally on behalf of Americans.   They devote their words to standing on the side of love, claiming to have all the answers.  No one else should question their motives.  They would like everyone to believe that decisions involving guns, global warming, taxation, education and health care are best suited to only the Democrats.

But wait!  What does this do to the Republican party?  Does this mean that the conservative side is evil because they have different ideas?  Yup…That absurdity is indeed where we are today.  “Conservatives are Nazi racists”…Sound familiar?  I always thought that conservatism meant following the Constitution along with loving thy neighbor as thyself.  I’ll get into this critique in an up-coming post.

Our human existence is based on the very nature of duality.  It is the highest order of ignorance to not see that this duality helps us develop a healthy sense of humility and compassion for one another.  No one side can be absolutely correct.  If we believed this then we would be living in a Dictatorship.

The U.S. Constitution laid the foundation for a governance system that brought us out of tyranny.  This is why neither the President nor one political party can remain in lifelong power.  Our two party system should debate ideas strictly within their constitutional boundaries, oversee a tight federal budget, and be accountable to their constituents who in turn take care of their local issues.  Solutions must be created cooperatively otherwise we will regress into chaos and tyranny.

Wake up Washington DC!  Work together for the common good.  It is what you are there to do.