Bluster

The 2016 Presidential campaign appears to already be underway, and the choices . . . well, seem "all American."  Although I no longer participate in the election process, I do pay attention to the process.  The American political system has seemed very orchestrated throughout my adult years, but I don't want to become completely cynical and jaded.  I basically gave up on the political system back in 1980, when the Ayatollah Khomeini of Iran said Americans would die if Carter was re-elected.  Now all these years later, Americans want to rant about Obama catering to Iran . . .  I remember 1979 and 1980, America kowtowed long before I ever heard of Obama.

I don't believe a President has actually led this country since Eisenhower, and he brought some ideas to the table that were a few of Hitler's "successes" like the autobahn and medical advancements.  His friendship with Prescott Bush was probably a good political move, if not for him, definitely for Mr. Bush's descendants.  Kennedy came in as a leader, but he didn't play the game that was required and we know how that ended.  JFK was the last president that attempted to actually lead the country.  Although Johnson billed his "great society," he wasn't an actual leader, he simply responded to social demand and economic opportunity.  The division in the nation over Viet Nam replaced the racial division, and "divide and conquer" was established.

The government no longer represented the people, nor did the president lead.  The Nixon years were an attempt to recreate the Eisenhower years, as he'd been the VP, but it didn't happen.  He didn't appeal to the boomers, the way Eisenhower appealed to their parents.  Then the whole Watergate mess, ended in his resignation, just a few months after the VP had resigned, so it became obvious the real powers that be controlled 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.  Gerald Ford entered the White House in 1974, and was never elected to the office of President.  Carter was elected in 1976.  Within a year, he was blamed for an already struggling economy, which did not fare well with Americans.  We didn't care about his religious beliefs, we wanted lower interest rates and higher wages!

Moving right along through the Reagan years, I have to wonder just how powerful Bush 41 was through that time.  I'd like to remind everyone that there were arms deals with Iran through those years.  The Iran-Contra hearings that took place in the 80s ultimately resulted in Oliver North and John Poindexter being found guilty, but then the convictions overturned on appeal and charges were not refiled.  So, in a nutshell, it appears that Lieutenant Colonel Oliver North threw himself on the grenade, took the initial hit, then an overturned verdict that ultimately just made the problem vanish . . .  No more questions asked and no more answers given.

This, of course, kept the American attention while Bush 41 actually obtained the Oval Office.  I will say this, as I watched the discourse of the Iran Contra hearings, when President Reagan looked so lost and said, "he didn't remember," I knew he wasn't lying.  The early stages of Alzheimer's was obvious in his troubled expression, which caused me to wonder how many other things he was unaware of, while Bush 41 was nearby.  Bush 41, his thousand points of light, and his speech mentioning the global economy with a "New World Order" should have been a wake up call.  I guess it was, to a point, in that he wasn't elected to a second term, but his successor, Bill Clinton, completed his NAFTA plan.  We can clearly see now, that Bill Clinton and Bush 41 get along famously, and 43 is in a photos with Clinton as well.

Obama promised change, and some folks think we've changed suddenly for the worse, but I see it just as a further degradation of the direction we were already going.  There have been some "open" changes, but truthfully it's only in the fact the course has gained momentum.  As we can already tell from this new campaign season, candidates are going to say what they think the people want to hear, and if it's in their best interests, they'll serve up what the people want.  Unfortunately, this now brings us to the current lot of candidates.  To be honest, I was almost reconsidering my decision to not vote, when Dr. Ben Carson appeared on the scene.  He's a man of convictions, he is the perfect example of "anyone can be anything they want if they work at it," he's a 7th day Sabbath keeper, and kosher I believe.  He's retired, so he's no longer in the medical system, I thought . . . and then in one statement, he completely lost me.  He would make vaccinations mandatory and remove all exemptions.  So, that was that.  I'm, once again, content to be on the political sidelines watching the "mock" two party tennis match.

Since candidates now, really only concern themselves with the best interest of their financial supporters and reflect the mentality of their sheep, American politics is really dirty.  As for the current line-up.   Hillary appears to have the democratic nomination tied up.  She's tired and tiring . . . The GOP has so many running, it's hard to even sort through the rhetoric of who says what.   In one interview, I'm guessing Jeb Bush has received a healthy donation from Monsanto.   Obviously Ben Carson has good support from Big Pharma.  Considering reality television and the "big revolution" of spouting opinions on social media, it only makes sense that Donald Trump is leading the pack . . . He gets everybody all wrankled and Americans love to be wrankled about something.  He's a business man who knows how to play his bankruptcies while living large. He blasts the media regularly, and republicans love that, thanks to Rush and Sarah P.  Donald Trump is truly the epitome of the American spirit.  Nobody truly knows how he got where he is, he's stayed famous longer than the Kardashians, and he is boisterous.  What a promising future.  We're tired of empty promises, we are ready to embrace empty bluster.

The simple believeth every word: but the prudent man looketh well to his going.  a Proverb of Holy Scripture