Changing Government

Picture it in your mind—a nice boy meets a nice girl when they are young and end up getting marred right out of high school. The boy goes out to get a job while the girl stays home and makes everything comfortable for the both of them. Before long their first baby comes and they begin their family together. Soon more children follow and the girl is kept busy keeping up with all of these babies while the boy works hard to provide a great life for them all. They have many years full of memories, laughter, and happy times and once they get older, the boy and the girl are able to retire with a comfortable income and spend their final years together.

            Now picture this—a boy meets a girl and just uses her, most likely getting her pregnant and leaving, even though he promised that he would love her forever. Even if they do end up getting married, it is most likely not for love and soon money issues, children, and lack of interest in trying will drive them to divorce. Either way, the girl will not stay at home with the family, the family most likely consisting of kid’s from different fathers, but instead will be out working long hours. Even a two income family is not enough to make ends meet and their lives are full of angst, stress, worry, and frustration. They may not even remember what laughter feels like and they do not look forward to what is coming in life. It is unlikely that they will ever be able to retire comfortably and they will probably work until they die.

            There are such disparities between the two scenarios listed above and yet they were both realities just a generation or so apart. I believe that the main factor that has caused such a shift in society in recent years is the fact that our countries politicians and leaders have drifted off and become too disconnected from the American people.

            I am sure that at one time those who went into politics did so because they wanted to make a difference. Leading this country used to be a noble profession. Now it is just full of crooks who are trying to figure out how to make more money, this is one of the only professions that are able to raise their own paychecks, whenever they want, and how they can benefit even more than they already are. It has all led to the average politician being way out of touch from their constituents. Do not believe me? Check out the story below.

            In April of 2014, the Democratic Congressman Jim Moran was reported as having said that members of Congress are underpaid for the job that they are performing. While it is perfectly acceptable for Moran to have his opinion, it is important to note a few important things. These things include:

• The average salary in Congress is $174,000 a year (the average household income for families in America is a little over $51,000)
• Congress representatives only work about half of the year.
• Congress does not have to pay for Obamacare insurance.
• Congress gets to fly around the country and gets their expenses comped by the tax payers without spending any of their own money.

Looking at the facts, I don’t think that the politicians are hurting too badly. In fact, that fact that Moran even thinks that he deserves more money for the job that he is doing, especially with so many Americans unemployed and relying on government assistance just to survive, shows how out of touch the politicians have become to the American population. They are not even able to perform their jobs properly and yet want to be paid more. Because of this disconnect, the American people are beginning to suffer and society is beginning to fall apart.

            In a world where the people who are supposed to have our best interests at heart are spending all of their time figuring out what will benefit them the most, it is easy to see how the fabric of the American society is falling to pieces. Gone are the days where one spouse can work and support his family while the other spouse stayed home and raised respectable children. No, now both parents must work at least one full time job each in order to try and make ends meet, although often they are not successful, just to pay the high salaries of our humble politicians and the enormous debt this country is in. And what happens to those children that are left alone while their parents are working? They are running around, making trouble, and not getting the chance to grow into respectable children.

            The family structure of America is also changing. It has become much more profitable in this country to sit at home and do nothing, have a bunch of kids that you do not want, and not care about who or where the father is compared to those who are married and work hard at their jobs. If you belong to the former group, you will receive a nice house, heating and electric assistance, free phone service, food, medical care, and even a check from the government each month. If you work hard, you are probably going to have trouble meeting these bills.

            Why is it that way? Why can someone who refuses to get a job living better than those who spend hours a week working their butts off? Because our politicians know that if they promise these benefits, people will vote for them and they can keep their cushy jobs. Unfortunately, the people who sit at home and abuse the help system are a large enough group that the politicians are winning

            Want another look at how politicians have become disconnected from the American people. Let’s look at Obamacare. This is an insurance plan that no one in this country wants to go on. It is expensive, difficult to understand, and forces those who do not have any extra money to find a way to pay for it. Why would our politicians vote something so popular in? It is not because they think it is great—most of them have no idea what is included in the large Obamacare law. It is not because other countries have a system like this—other countries with universal healthcare do not require their citizens to go out and purchase expensive healthcare, they are just given it. It is because they do not care. They don’t have to use it; they can keep their nice comfortable insurance that they already have, so they really do not care how it affects the American people.

            The change that I would like to see this year is a change in our political system, a change back to where the politicians actually cared about their citizens and did not feel entitled to way much than they deserve. Why not go back to how it was in the beginning of our country where politicians were given enough to get to the capital and back home to perform their duties and a small stipend for their time and that was it. There were no large sums of income from doing this job. You did it because you felt it was your duty, not because you would make a lot of money from it.

            I believe that if we force the politicians to do the work because it is their duty, providing them with just enough money to perform their duties and no more, then you would be able to fix a lot of the problems that are going on in this country. We could eliminate the greedy politicians and instead get good hearted people who want to help others in office. Perhaps with some luck and hard work, we can get back to a scenario where everyone lives comfortably and can retire in style!