this will be a difficult topic to tackle...
how to start?
politics.....its a subject that's interested me since high school. i've belonged to both of our 'usual suspect' parties. i've changed my mind on issues as i've gotten older. i've seen changes in the people of this country, that i'd never thought i'd see. i don't remember us being this divided before, and by all accounts, from the electoral count, we're 'less divided' than we were during the two previous presidencies. a larger win.

was i happy during the last administration? ok, that's the wrong word, happiness is something that's more relative to your homelife, your job, your kids, etc.
was i disappointed? that's putting it mildly. there was something at least 'iffy' in the 2000 election, though i didn't think so in the 2004 election. i feel they were both VERY close elections though, very close indeed. much closer than this one. so i was unhappy, or annoyed, a little about the election of 2000 itself. then i got over it. life goes on, and surely, things would be fine. then 9/11 happened. so many things changed. i feel we lived in fear, all of us, the entire population of these united states. and with valid reason. a horrible attack. then president bush took over, and even my eyes teared up seeing president bush atop the wreckage, that had once been the twin towers, with the bullhorn, promising to get those who had taken down our buildings. and i was so proud at the unity this country showed....one heart, one soul. how could one not be caught up in that? we were together, and we had support from overseas as well, and not just our usual allies. i went on to online global community chats, and it was overwhelming...the condolences and good wishes from folks from countries like china, and younger people (teens or early twenties) in IRAN...no kidding...pakistan....it was amazing the outpouring of support.
but then the president erred...he decided to invade iraq. i said up til the last moment that he wouldn't do it, he wouldnt go there, iraq was NOT involved. no iraqis on the planes. iraq was a country whose government was actually despised by bin laden, for its secularity. he also despised the saudi government, and the pakistani government.
my husband said 'he's going into iraq'..and i didn't believe it til it happened. when that happened, he lost my support, along with other moderates and kept losing us with with the overuse and, after a time, obvious well planned 'terror alerts' (when the polls went negative for them), so eventually it got tiresome and i couldn't wait for an opportunity to vote him out of office. well that never worked. we put kerry out there, a good guy, a war veteran but he had zilch personality. i knew it was the wrong choice. so another four years. and we, as democrats sat and moped and bitched and whined. yes we did. i admit it. bitch whine bitch whine...'whats he doing now???????' oh NO why did he do that ?
but he did do some things, and we whined some more....we felt a little heady when we got both houses of congress..still not enough of a majority to fight a veto, but it still felt better.
but we kept whining.
so now, we got our president. and he has a huge job ahead of him. he really does. i can't imagine the pressure he is under, and yes, compared to the pressure bush was under, as he inherited a financially stable (well, we think...we aren't sure at this point HOW well the banks and financial institutions were actually doing)anyhow, supposedly financially stable country that was at peace. and he was going to be the 'unifier' not the 'divider', but 'divide' he did. sadly, to me.

but back to the new president, and the job he has inherited. its been three months. and they've been busy. trying to be bipartisan and being met with a bit of resistance to new ideas. people generally find 'new ideas' intimidating or scary, (its why i still haven't 'twittered') and the fact is, the old ideas have 'FAILED'...trickle down does NOT work. we are in a bad situation at present, and i'm not sure if this is the right idea, what he and his new administration, are doing; i'm no economist....but i can't tell you it WILL fail either. and apparently a lot of people who are experts in economics do think this is the right thing to do. so i'm hoping and praying.
but the weird thing, the main point of all of this is what i am seeing in the division.
the president has an excellent approval rating at present, so it is a much smaller group
of people now, than say, 2000..that is 'unhappy'. but some have gone beyond the whining, griping, whining, griping, whining and griping (you recall, its what the other half of us did for eight years)
however, instead....they're buying guns, ammo, storing food, and then one politician told a reporter that the best thing to do was draw out ALL of your money from the bank and keep it 'on you'....i read about people inciting people to actually start an armed revolution! you hear the governor of texas talk about secession, and he looks serious, is he? this is what happens when democracy works? the majority, (and a much more sizeable majority than previous elections, as i said before) got their president. that's democracy in action. so this smaller group, of around 20 - 30% wants to start an armed revolution? and that's fair to the majority? no, that's called a coup d'etat!
this is really beginning to sound insanely crazy to me, at this point. plus i figured, that like president bush had been in office a couple months, everything eventually calmed down.
so i'm hoping things will eventually calm down, once again. we've had one incidence in pittsburgh already....i really, really hope some people start thinking about what they are really putting out there, and the people who will listen to it, and what those people might do with that (mis)information.
and not just their 'bottom line'...(yes that is for people like rush, hannity, glenn beck. ann coulter, fox news..if they keep things stirred up, well its a ratings bonanza, whch of course is the point...and some left leaning shows as well, that gripe and stir things up when the president is attempting to make centrist decisions)
and i hope people calm down, read a book, read the bible, whatever gives you peace. and put that gun in the gun rack, unloaded....please.
and just settle back for 4 to 8 years and whine and gripe and bitch....
you know....
just like we did.