Town hall meetings
August 31st 2009 08:27
The town hall meetings continue around the country -- and the level of anger and hostility from attendees is still palpable. Why all the fury? Why do we see average people showing up at these meetings and yelling at their elected officials? Here are some thoughts on why this is happening:
* The economy is still in the tank. Unemployment is still high and there is no real end in sight. We're told the recession may be over, but it certainly doesn't feel like it to most people.
* Folks are furious about the continued failure to enforce our immigration laws. That's one reason for the continuous questions about whether illegal aliens will receive free health care under the proposed health care plan.
* While the Dow has rebounded a little, 401K's are still way down. Also, home values haven't rebounded and may never rebound.
* Despite us BEING BROKE AS A COUNTRY, Washington continues to spend and spend and spend. Recent budget deficit projections are downright frightening. And it's not even effective spending. The stimulus bills? They're not doing much in the way of stimulation. The bailouts of Wall Street? What has that done for the man on the street?
* Lobbyists are busier than ever as companies and special interests scramble for a share of that government money (money that we're borrowing from China, by the way).
People are fed up. Sure, someone may call his elected representative and express his opinion, but he winds up being a check in a box after talking to a intern who is little more than a buffer. So when folks have a chance to see their elected officials in the flesh, they jump at the chance to speak out and have their voices be heard. And the elected officials are finding that all is not well outside the incestuous incubator that we call Washington. They are having to face the folks who sent them to Washington and those folks are fighting mad.
Do you think the senators and representatives have gotten the message yet? They would do well to remember the faces and the words of their constituents when they head back to Washington. The American public has often been accused of being apathetic when it comes to politics. That's clearly no longer the case.
* The economy is still in the tank. Unemployment is still high and there is no real end in sight. We're told the recession may be over, but it certainly doesn't feel like it to most people.
* Folks are furious about the continued failure to enforce our immigration laws. That's one reason for the continuous questions about whether illegal aliens will receive free health care under the proposed health care plan.
* While the Dow has rebounded a little, 401K's are still way down. Also, home values haven't rebounded and may never rebound.
* Despite us BEING BROKE AS A COUNTRY, Washington continues to spend and spend and spend. Recent budget deficit projections are downright frightening. And it's not even effective spending. The stimulus bills? They're not doing much in the way of stimulation. The bailouts of Wall Street? What has that done for the man on the street?
* Lobbyists are busier than ever as companies and special interests scramble for a share of that government money (money that we're borrowing from China, by the way).
People are fed up. Sure, someone may call his elected representative and express his opinion, but he winds up being a check in a box after talking to a intern who is little more than a buffer. So when folks have a chance to see their elected officials in the flesh, they jump at the chance to speak out and have their voices be heard. And the elected officials are finding that all is not well outside the incestuous incubator that we call Washington. They are having to face the folks who sent them to Washington and those folks are fighting mad.
Do you think the senators and representatives have gotten the message yet? They would do well to remember the faces and the words of their constituents when they head back to Washington. The American public has often been accused of being apathetic when it comes to politics. That's clearly no longer the case.
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