Our Sunshine, Susan, shares her ‘middle aged musings’ with the group - What can we as individuals do to make a difference in our government? This Huddle is one you don’t want to miss - read the full transcript below.
As we age, most of the time it allows us to have more time to think. The challenge with thinking or musing though as we get older is what do we do with those thoughts? As I grew up, I always thought, why is it that the older people are the ones that write their politicians, show up to vote, and attend town halls? Are they just some crazy, whacky person with too much time on their hands? Well, as I am older the answer has become more obvious. But until you approach an older age, to most people, it is not always so obvious. These older sometimes considered whacky people, including myself, have more spare time on our hands. When you are younger, you are raising a family, working to support that family or yourself. So, there really is just not much time, if any, to think, study, and investigate those things that don’t impact your life right now; in this moment it is more about not only how do I survive, but also thrive as a young person and family. Someone else can think about the larger, more overwhelming, frustrating world of government.
So as a middle-aged person, I have been asking myself, what can I do about my musings? It is one thing to reflect or think, but what do I do with these reflections and thoughts. As Johnny NoSki, who in another month or so will have earned his Trident as a Navy Seal, as a child used to ask his dad, “Doing?” But not only do I ask myself what do I do, but how do I do?
I realize I am only one small element of the almost 11 million people in GA, 331 million people in America or the 7.8 billion people in the world. How can I really help make a positive difference in the world? We have all heard, “be the light in your place – right where you are today – if you just positively impact one person, you have made a difference.” But really? Is that enough? Can one person that is an average middle-aged person make a difference that matters?
And no, this reflection of words does not have the answer to that question? That can be for another day.
But I feel like I need to do something beyond keep the thoughts in my head. So here goes my attempt at doing something.
So today, and since it is the most visible with the Democratic National Convention just completed and the Republican National Convention just starting, I’m going to focus on the Federal Level, but the thoughts apply to the State and local levels as well.
With that preamble, I will start with my “What Ifs?”
What If. . . .
We had a country where almost all the people support Unity, Peace, Cooperation, Collaboration, Decency, Empathy, and Caring for One Another. Think back to the Presidential Elections and the current one. There seems to be a group of people that think the best way to get a majority of Americans to vote is through creating an atmosphere of Fear, Greed, and Selfishness. And guess what? They have won in the past! There is another group of people that think the best way to get a majority of Americans to vote for them is through Unity and Hope with a bit of anger, fear and greed sprinkled in. And guess what? They have won too! So, both approaches can win the Presidency.
But wouldn’t this country be such a better place to live if whomever becomes President and whatever Political party they belong to wins with Unity, Peace, Cooperation, Collaboration, Decency, Empathy and Caring for One Another Without the Fear and Greed?
But that isn’t enough.
What If. . .
We had a country that the winning Presidential Candidate who won the election on the platform of Unity, Peace, Cooperation, Collaboration, Decency, Empathy, and Caring for One Another, didn’t just campaign on that platform, but also then lived and led by those principles everyday they presided from the White House?
But we would still need another What If?
What If. . . .
We had a Congress that did not vote almost every vote down party lines. What if we had a Congress that focused on representing their constituents who elected them, and no not the PACS and big donors, but the people that got out and voted and live in those communities these Congress Men and Women represent?
What If, we had a Congress who focused on what is good for the Nation and not their own Power or their own financial well-being of being in the top percent of income when their Ego, I mean Civic, duty is done?
It can be done. According to the PEW Research Center (June 2014), it seems that in 1973-1974, there was substantial overlap among Congress on political ideology. And this was even when Nixon was resigning as President. Look at the Reconstruction period after the Civil War when All voices were beginning to be represented. We could ask “What Happened?” and “Why did the pathway change?” and there are lots of reasons and theories on what did happen, but that really isn’t relevant for us in getting back on track to being a Nation that Cares, is Civil, and is a Shining Example to first its citizens, its visitors, and then other nations.
And finally, What If . . .
We really had a good choice on who to vote for…not the lesser of two evils?
I refuse to believe that the citizens of America and their Government Leaders are merely sheep that are so easily led to the slaughter by foreign entities focusing on disrupting our way of living and government, by our internal Government leaders who are focusing only on their own well-being and power, or by our Corporate C-Suite leaders focusing only on their own well-being and power. We are better than this. We are America. Let us Act Like America and Take a Stand!
How you may ask?
Stop tuning in to Opinion TV, Streaming Platforms, Radio, Podcast, Social media Post, and other mediums that are All about Ratings and Advertisers. If you do not listen, then our airwaves will not be cluttered with non-sense and divisive content and messaging. These people do NOT CARE about YOU! They are entertainment. Remember what Condace Pressley told us about a Talk Show host she knew…he said he may know something is false, but if his viewers believed it that was all that mattered. These entities and people are about getting you to listen so the advertisers will pay them so they can live a great financially driven life. Remember the saying “Garbage In…Garbage Out” Stop putting Garbage in your head, in your environment, in your world. Yes, you need to be aware and educated about what is going on in the world. The best advice we have gotten is from Dr. Tom Grant, who was an award-winning Investigative Reporter and has a PhD in Ethics, that was a guest a few weeks ago. Read your news. Buy it and Read It. Check the sources. Recognize the difference between opinion and fact. Take the emotion out of listening to someone tell you the news and create your own emotion. Understand the source and the credibility of the source. Yes, this takes work, but that is why God gave us a brain. Otherwise, we are just sheep.
Request a Comprehensive Strategic Plan – Not from the individual Political Parties, which they call their Platform and is anything but strategic or for the comprehensive good of the country. And yes, I just finished reading both parties Political Platforms. It is a tough exercise since the Democrat one is a lot of saying the same thing over and over with no strategic order or thought with very little details on actual priorities and implementation, and the Republicans decided to just brush off their 2016 Platform without any updates. This would not work with any successful organization. In fact, every successful organization and business has a solid Long-Term strategic Plan focusing on 3 to 5 years out. We should expect that from our Government. That way we can be strategic about how to put our country on a better pathway to success. Let us prioritize the pillars for success and create Initiatives that are solutions – not short-term sound bites. Isn’t it scary that our elections are decided by a few hot button topics that in the grand scheme of things are not the most critical to a United Nation?
And I believe, most Important of all, Write, Call, Visit, and make your Voice heard by your local, state, and federal representatives on how you want them to vote and how to help you and your community. How else are they going to know if you don’t? Lobbyist?
The good news is there are so many tools today to help you do this. Sign up for their newsletters. Sign up for votesmart.org. It will notify you every vote, letter, rating, etc. that your representative gets.
You will also learn which of your representatives are really listening. I sent an email to my state senator, state representative and US House representative on the same day about the same topic. One, Clay Pirkle, called me within 30 minutes, one sent a form letter about the topic, and the other never ever communicated back to me. Interesting.
One of our biggest challenges to get to a United Government that can work together, respectfully have differences, create great solutions, and not focus on their selves, is our current system for electing our officials. In today’s world to become a Representative of your community, even on the State level now in a lot of cases, you must have so much money to break through. One can argue over whether a Corporation is an individual or not and the decision by the Supreme Court that gives these Corporate entities rights, but there is something that can be done to not allow these entities to influence our elections. We can limit the amount or from whom people raise money, we need a level playing field that you do not have to be wealthy or bought by the wealthy to represent your communities at any level. And if there is proof that you are being bought; however, that is defined, there are major consequences, not just a little embarrassment for a day or two. Let your representatives know this is how you feel. Push that they make the changes to level the playing field. Otherwise, we get to keep choosing the lesser of two evils.
There has been a lot of focus on get out to vote…and yes that is important, but we also need a better system to give us better options to vote for.
There are so many challenges in our world today, as previous generations have also thought about their world, it is easy to be overwhelmed, give up, and feel defeated. I have heard way too many young people say this recently. But that is not the answer for sure.
In closing I encourage you to put your voice out there, in a peaceful, persistent way.
I do not think violent protest are the way to be heard. That just adds fuel to the fire and gives excuses for those that do not think the way the protestors think to discredit them and go further away in any compromise or understanding from what the protest is about.
I encourage you to encourage good, honorable, smart people to run for office and then support them through the process and once elected.
Do not be a sheep and allow these talking heads, the foreign government influencers, or the radicals on all sides to manipulate you. Do not let them stir your anger. Do not be a puppet. Be yourself.
Stand Strong. Educate Yourself. Be a Great Citizen and Put your Voice Out there for a country with Unity, Peace, Cooperation, Collaboration, Decency, Empathy, and Caring for One Another.
We are Intrepid Spirits. I encourage you to not give up, get overwhelmed because we together can Make a Positive Difference in our country.
Thanks for listening and No, Dr. Grant, I am not running for office. I am sure I can serve in some other way.