by Alan Pounders
When I look at our government, I see a picture of double standards, hypocrisy, and outright dishonesty. This is not limited to one single person, party, or government branch; rather it is all encompassing. On the campaign trail we always hear promises of low taxes, government transparency, accountability, and “change”. The problem is, these promises are rarely delivered and when they are, they work to the detriment of our country rather than the good.
Recently, the US Congress voted to post the new Agriculture bill 72 hours before they vote. This was done in order to give them an opportunity to confirm that all of the farm subsidies, etc. are included and posted correctly. This is a great idea. In retrospect, the Health Care Reform bill will reform 1/6 of the US economy, yet Speaker Nancy Pelosi is holding back and is refusing to hold a vote to put a 72 hour wait on it. Why? One answer, we cannot afford to make the American people wait any longer. If this is true, why would “Reform now-ers” go on record to say the bill would be tabled if there isn’t a public option? It must not be that necessary if it can be put on hold for political reasons. If it is so important that it “needs” to be passed immediately, I would think any type of positive reform should be allowed to move forward, not be tabled to revisit when the political environment is a little more “friendly” toward it. The truth, in my opinion, is they want to stuff all their special projects into a “super-sized” bill, put it to a vote before anyone has a chance to read it, and ram it through before the American people know what has happened. What do you think?
Our representatives have reduced themselves to the same social intellectual level of a 3rd grader. During Obama’s speech to the US congress, Rep. Joe Wilson(R)-SC called the President a liar. Personally, I agree with this statement, however it probably wasn’t made in an appropriate setting. Mr. Wilson apologized on his own accord, the president accepted, and we move on, right? No. Pelosi was angry, so Congress passed a resolution of disapproval and asked for Mr. Wilson to stand and apologize on the House floor. Compare this reaction to that of the remarks of Rep. Alan Grayson(D)-FL. Mr. Grayson, on the house floor, commented that “all republicans want senior citizens to die fast.” Instead of apologizing, he then went on to compare Republicans idea of proper health care to the Holocaust. This is completely outrageous, and quite frankly, it is unbecoming of a United States Congressman. I am against health care reform in the form it is currently being presented because it will not improve anything. Reform is intended to fix problems, not create more. Everything government runs turns into a huge, costly, inefficient bureaucracy. The point is, Mr. Grayson was allowed to say this with no apologies, no resolution of disapproval, not even a statement that disapproves of his statements. This is a double standard based on political party.
The President and his cronies insist that a bureaucrat will NEVER stand between you and your doctor, however the details of the implementation of the bill would do just that. The bill sets up a group of appointed board members who answer to the Secretary of Health and Human Services, who in turn would decide what goes and what doesn’t. This sounds like government standing between you and your doctor. They also deny that the health care bill would form “death panels”, that it would cover illegal immigrants, or abortions. Resolutions have been brought up to insure these things will not happen but they have all been voted down. To me, this, at best, sends mixed messages.
We also have ACORN, an international community action group facing charges of voter fraud in several states after their 2008 work with the Obama campaign. Also, they were just caught on video giving advice on how to dodge tax codes and business laws to two undercover reporters posing as a pimp and a prostitute. The US Senate and the House each voted to defund ACORN, but somehow they still recently received just under $1 million for fire safety in Louisiana. On top of that, corrupt local governments, such as New Orleans, continue to give ACORN money for projects, such as building houses. What does ACORN know about fire protection? Where are they building new houses in New Orleans? I recently visited New Orleans and I found that the people ACORN is supposed to be helping are living in houses with holes in the roof and walls missing. Where is all this taxpayer money going?
Then there is SEIU. President Obama, in his own words, stated he would turn to SEIU for help regarding his policies. What have we seen from SEIU? They certainly aren’t afraid to flex their muscle and use scare tactics in attempts to silence anyone who disagrees with Obama’s policies. Is this the help Obama referred to?
Finally, we arrive to the reason people like myself are forced to ask these kinds of questions. It is the media’s job to ask tough questions, investigate corruption, shine spotlights on inaccuracies, and generally be a check on the powers that control our country and our world. They have dropped the ball. The far left hurl accusations that conservatives such as myself, conservative new media, and conservative news outlets such as FOX News do not present the truth, but take a long, hard look at the liberal media and the “mainstream” media. Where did they stand on their coverage of ACORN? (I use this example because it is occurring now) FOX News, along with Conservative talk radio and conservative bloggers have been reporting on ACORN’s corruption for months. Where has the mainstream media been? It took two independent Vloggers to expose this most recent scandal. The toughest question the mainstream can muster; Can ACORN survive this controversy and continue their good work? Are you kidding me?
To me, just the few things I have discussed here send a pretty troubling series of messages. We have a legislative branch that cares more about egos, favors, and agendas than they do about America and are more concerned with childish games than with their responsibilities to you and me. We have a president that we do not really know. He said, “You will know me by who I associate myself with.” So far there is Jeremiah Wright, Williams Ayers, his cabinet and advisors (composed of a number of self-proclaimed socialists, Marxists, and communists.), and the groups ACORN and SEIU I discussed earlier. All government officials swear an oath to uphold the Constitution of the United States. If they do not do so, the media should be there to serve as a huge spotlight to expose the guilty parties. We have a media that no longer cares about investigating and finding the truth, unless it furthers the agendas of their parent companies.
America can still be saved, but it will take all of US. WE, as Americans citizens, must hold our representatives accountable. We must send a message to Washington. WE ARE THE AMERICAN PEOPLE and the government works for us, not the other way around.
