My Mid-Life Crisis.....Politics!



I am having a mid-life crisis with my love of politics. Honestly….what is happening to our country? I used to love to know that I was part of the democratic process. I loved the opportunity to vote and the feeling that I was one out of millions that was actually making a difference. I have always voted….ever since the year I was eligible to do so, I have voted in every election for President....and in many local offices, to boot. No excuses….I was brought up to believe that if I didn’t vote, I couldn’t complain. Lately, I’ve been feeling like it doesn’t matter. We have no real leaders in our country. Nada…no one stands out and makes me want to believe again. Instead, I hear a lot of double talk, a lot of fluff, and a lot of “pure-t” bullshit. Lies and more lies. It truly makes me wonder where our country is headed. Really….on days like today, I don’t even want to think about our future….

I’ve been feeling this way for some time, but why blog about it now? Well, I climb on my soap-box tonight because when I came home and turned on the nightly news, what did I hear? First of all, the DOW fell 419 points today! For someone who is fortunate enough to have a good job, I believe in investing in our country by building a retirement account. By believing in the U.S. economy. However, when you see your retirement accounts lose thousands in a matter of days, you wonder why you invest in the first place. I work hard for my money. When I see drops like we’ve seen in the past couple of weeks, it makes me want to put everything in a shoebox and bury it in the yard. (Please don’t come dig holes in my yard because Jon would never let me do that!) Anyway, after having this initial reaction, reality sets in and it really does make you wonder if the retirement account you’ve worked so hard to build, well, will it be gone before your very eyes? Poof. Nothing. Zero.

The second reason I’m on a roll tonight? I heard that our President arrived on his first day of vacation at Martha’s Vineyard today. I’m not saying that he doesn’t warrant a vacation. Sure…everyone deserves some time off work. However, I think what bothers me most about his vacation, is that this isn’t a long-weekend trip to Myrtle Beach with a hotel room at the Red Roof Inn. Instead, he chooses to take a 10-day vacation to one of the most elaborate islands in the Cape Cod area of New England (the third time in three years, by the way) and he does so while there are so many people out of work, struggling to make ends meet, and who haven’t been on a vacation of their own in a very long time. To me, this vacation is unforgivable. I mean – who wouldn’t want a 10-day vacation? I do!  You do!  We all do!  But that just isn't realistic for us....or our pocketbooks!  It clearly shows that this administration does not think our economy is a priority. I’m sure if the shoe were on the other foot; our President would hope that his leader would be busting his/her ass to make this country what it use to be. I just don’t see that happening. What happened to his slogan of CHANGE? I see no change here. It’s the same selfish, dysfunctional White House that we’ve seen for some time.

But let’s not pick on our President alone….because it certainly isn’t his load alone to bear. Our Congress sucks too. They argue, they are divided, they are reactive. They are more concerned with beating the opposite party that they have disconnected themselves from the people who put them in office. They, too, have lost sight of what this country is about. And they, too, do not think our economy is a priority. It’s exhausting.

I could ask that you email or call your congress person tomorrow. Put the word out. But, really….would it matter? What is it going to take to make us stand up for what this country deserves? For what we deserve?  I hate to imagine what it is that will finally get us there.  However,  I think the first step is to find a real leader. Someone who not only talks the talk, but walks the walk. Someone who isn’t in it for themselves or their political agenda or their political party. Someone who thinks that this country is the priority. This country’s economy is the priority. Someone who believes in the American Dream. Someone who wants to put Americans back to work. Someone who wants to give Americans the opportunity to keep their homes or buy new homes. And someone who wants to give Americans the financial security to take a vacation of their own……