January 5, 2020

Choices.

I deleted the blog post that originally occupied this time slot. It was the first thing I did upon waking this morning. It wasn’t like it was making me sleepless or anything, I simply woke up, decided I didn’t like the original post and deleted it. Because, of course I don’t want a Giant Meteor to wipe out the planet. I wouldn’t mind a close call, just to scare everyone a lot and to reboot perspective of our place in the Universe, but extinction? Not my jam.

The original post was about the choices thus far in the 2020 Presidential election, the associated monotony, and commentary on the general chaos gripping the United States. You see, I’m tired of people saying Pete Buttigieg doesn’t have enough experience to be President. I’m tired of candidates making promises they have no intention or capability of keeping. I’m tired of people promising “free stuff” to win votes. And I’m really tired of this narrative of demonizing people that are successful and thus living a very rich life.

I have always believed one must work hard. You give more than you take from society. Of course I believe in safety nets; everyone in the United States should have some sort of healthcare that is reasonable and affordable, but I don’t believe every citizen should have the same healthcare. I also don’t believe college should be free. Trade schools? Yes. Vocational programs? Yes. But my tax dollars shouldn’t fund some hippy dippy individual that wants to study something frivolous for four years just so they can declare they have a degree. Do you want to become a teacher? I’ll help fund that, as long as you promise to use your degree for education for (solve for X) number of years after obtaining the necessary education.

The majority of candidates for the Democrats are swinging way too far left. And of course the failure in the Oval Office is a nut job that really doesn’t know where he is, let alone where he’s swinging.

We need reasonable candidates in the center. Don’t hug the far left and then say you’ll drift to the center closer to the election. When I’m watching the endless litany of debates and town halls and every other ad generating ploy for the news media, I want to see who you are. Period. Full stop. End of story. I’m taking you for your word, right now, that you’re going to do what you’re saying you’ll do and if you’re too far in one direction or another, mark me down for not interested.

Theatrics, hysterics, grandstanding… all of these things must come to an end. Perhaps a close pass by a really big meteor will help get things back to a more reasonable timeline.