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Health & Fitness

Blog: A View From Left Field-Fixing America, Post the 2012 Election

The United States is at a crossroad.

Now that Karl Rove’s money machine has gone down to a resounding defeat on Election Eve 2012, the Republicans might finally be ready to play ball.  Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell is eating crow now that his goal to make Obama a one term president has failed. 

 The next order of business demands that Republicans in Congress scrap the no new taxes pledge that they signed with the nation’s supreme provocateur, Grover Norquist.  It is unconscionable to me that a majority of our Republican congressional representatives have signed pledges with Norquist not to raise taxes.  In fact, Grover targets any Republican for extinction if they seek to break that pledge.   Until Republicans dissolve their bonds with Norquist, Congress will remain in gridlock for the foreseeable future.

 Norquist is the devil incarnate and needs to be “outed’ for all his “sub rosa” political ploys that put him in concert with America’s enemies.  Grover supports militant Islamic causes while lording over Republicans in Congress with his no new tax pledge.   What a contradictory position to be in!  For those unfamiliar with Grover Norquist, I refer you to the following websites:

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 Maybe it’s time to throw the baby out with the bathwater and clean house with the likes of Karl Rove, Grover Norquist, the Koch Brothers, Rush Limbaugh,  Ann Coulter et al.  These divisive individuals breach the grounds of civility with a one sided message of contempt and hostility for those they disagree with.  Reasonable dialog is what we need today.  It will uplift the political campaigns of tomorrow and the nature of public discourse today.

 A new America emerged with the Election of 2012.  We are rapidly becoming a pluralistic society and the Republicans have to take cognizance of that fact.  Otherwise they will continue to be on the wrong side of history.  Black and Hispanic voters comprise nearly 25% of the Electorate.  Factor in the other minority groups and the handwriting’s on the wall and clearly readable.  Either join the direction that America is trending towards or marginalize yourselves even further. 

 A woman’s right to choose and contraception are just that.  Partake if you care to or reject them if your religion or conscience is in opposition.  It’s our job to live our own life, not the lives of others.  Also, out of respect for all religions, let’s avoid having one‘s dictums take precedence over another.

 On the subject of immigration, most undocumented people come here to better the lives of their families and themselves.  While their act is illegal, it’s a low priority crime.  So is marijuana.  Let’s be sensible and deal with them in an enlightened rather than reactionary manner.  Many of these undocumented people join our military and often die for this country, while others make positive contributions to our economy.  I think we can find better ways to resolve this issue where everybody wins.

 This is the dawn of challenging times.  As a people and as a government, we must deal with our diversities through engagement, and not through polarization.  This will force us to work together, find solutions and keep our nation great.  If the points that divide continue to produce gridlock as they have done for the past 30 years, the United States will find it increasingly tougher to navigate in a world that is constantly gaining on it.

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