At one point in this nation”s history people had a strong sense of what it meant to be an American.
Our legislators and leaders worked together to solve the many issues that arose in our past. Sometimes, the actions they took were the wrong ones, sometimes the correct ones, but the fact remains that what it means to be a representative, senator or president has evolved in recent years.
It”s not very difficult to see – by simply skimming through the voting results of several landmark legislative bills it shows that political polarization is reaching extremes that were once unheard of.
Now more than ever leaders from both parties are flat-out refusing to compromise or cooperate. The most disturbing aspect of this is that they are encouraged to do so by the American public. We are screwing ourselves by giving into emotion over reason.
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Of the five current presidential candidates, three of the five have made an entire political career out of being unwilling to compromise.
Ted Cruz and Donald Trump have captured the spirits of right-wing extremists, and have managed to almost completely fracture the Republican Party. They”ve alienated everyone from John Boehner to John McCain, who has become so distraught with the party he once unified that he has refused to attend the upcoming GOP convention.
On the other side of the aisle, Bernie Sanders has somehow convinced a significant portion of the American people that the U.S. is ready to adopt his self-described European Socialist beliefs, despite the fact that Europe is currently on the verge of a major meltdown, with massive immigration, employment and radicalization issues.
Sanders believes the country is ready for a $15 minimum wage, even though economists say such a brash move could result in massive unemployment for those with limited skills, like the disadvantaged he claims to represent.
This is not to say that certain areas may benefit from a minimum wage increase. Several cities are doing just that and faring well. That being said, a nationwide raise to $15 dollars is simply not reasonable.
Rather than taking criticism in stride, all three of these candidates have simply deflected and refused any blame, which stands in stark contrast to the other two candidates, John Kasich and Hillary Clinton. Both have a history of admitting when they were wrong.
Neither Kasich nor Clinton are my top choices. They both have some issues and are imperfect human beings, but when compared to the other candidates, they are far and away the more rational choices.
Supporters of the other three candidates believe it is a time for radical change in America – I ask why? We definitely have our fair share of big issues, but so does every major country on the planet.
Our job market is strong, our economy is bouncing back and although our crime rates are still higher than most industrial countries, they are falling dramatically. It seems to me that the establishment is actually doing a pretty good job. There has been a growing movement of irrational hatred for moderate ideals, but there”s no good reason for that.
There are five candidates still in the race, and two of the five are rational people. The other three are either lying about their promises or will not be able to get anything done if they”re elected. They are fantastic at appealing to the hearts of the American people, but under closer scrutiny their views prove problematic, possibly even destructive.
The newest American fad is to be outraged at perceived flaws in our system that are not necessarily there. Instead, why don”t the American people find themselves outraged over how President Obama is woefully mishandling the Middle East, or outraged over the fact that the most powerful country in the world is currently accepting only 10,000 Syrian refugees?
Better yet, let”s not be outraged at all. Let”s take the time to make the best decisions for this great land we live in. We owe ourselves that.
Sam Balas can be reached at [email protected]