Who’s Looking Out for Us?

Is our government really looking out for us, or has it become all about them? Politicians meet behind closed doors, draft up legislation without our knowledge, then railroad it through. If shoving it down our throats won’t work, then maybe a little misdirection is all that’s needed to keep us from noticing what’s actually going on. It’s amazing how far we’ve strayed from where the Founders started, and where we seem to be headed is frightening.

Those in power no longer see themselves as responsible to the people. I wouldn’t say that we are at the point of being responsible to our law-makers, but it looks like that’s where things are going if left unchecked. I haven’t been politically aware for very long, but recent events have really opened my eyes to the hypocrisy and seeming endless cycle of double-speak, smoke and mirrors tactics and elitism. My feeling is that our law-makers only see as far as the next round of elections, when they will make more wild promises with no intention to make good on them. As long as we buy the latest plate of hot, fresh BS they’ll make it back into office where they’re accountable to no one.

There are many of us (the people) who are responsible for perpetuating this cycle of unproductiveness. A segment of society has allowed themselves to be sucked into the excitement of election time, voting for whoever has the sexiest promises, then forgetting about what really matters: results. If we can’t expect these people to follow through with all that hot air, then we need to up the ante. We “hired” them to do a job which they themselves defined during their respective campaigns. It’s pretty simple, do what you said you were going to do, and if things aren’t working out, explain exactly the reasons why, and what your plans are to fix the problem. If this is too complex for our political leaders, they should be looking for a new job on the next go-round.

We’re on a path to allowing (through apathy) our leaders to govern indefinitely, unchecked and become that which we’ll be expected to serve. We need to put our elected officials in fear of the people, which will be one of the first steps in returning to the original intent of the Constitution. Those in power need to be reminded that the Constitution defines what the government cannot do, not what it may (or shall) do. At least those who served in the early stages of our government were aware that they could be out of a job in a heartbeat if their constituency became dissatisfied with their representation, or they were dangerously close to circumventing the Constitution. That humility is gone now, which means we’ve lost a crucial virtue in our leadership. That virtue must be restored if we mean to survive as a free people.

-- This article was published in the November 2009 issue of the CABPRO News.