By Judith Gayle | Political Waves
Now that bin Laden sleeps with the fishes and no longer leads the motley crew of zealots known as al Queda (a.k.a. the core,) this nation is rethinking the zeitgeist that has driven us to the edge of insanity for the last ten years. If we no longer have to be afraid of the cruel plots and twisted imaginings of one little religious radical and his group of malcontents — essentially putting an end to the hyperinflated Global War On Terror — what shall we fear now?
In some schools of thought — you know which ones I mean — America without a capital-e Enemy will soon turn all soft and flabby, lose ground as it stops to lick its wounds instead of standing guard, snarling and snapping with pitbull patriotism. Never mind that remaining hyper-vigilant against threats from without is the kind of Cold War paranoia that got us into the ‘liberation’ business in the first place, a euphemistic cover for our continued imperialism. Unable to dismantle government without the pretense of a clear threat, or to make his mark in the history books without an enemy, or to plunder resources without extreme nationalism, Dubby gave us a Global War on Terror. Thankfully, both are now distasteful — if not distant – memories, and while life is currently no bed of roses, it’s ever so much easier without either of them.
Free of distractions, then, can we finally agree that the threat to all the things we hold dear these days comes from within? Might we take a moment to carefully examine the intention of those holding power, to decide if their motives match our own? This is our moment to scrutinize those who influence our daily lives, not to demonize but rather to raise awareness and inform choice. It’s a sorry state of affairs when we must decide not if our country is misdirected or our president on the right trajectory, but rather if the representatives we’ve elected are behaving as friend or enemy to the public interest.
The Paul Ryan budget proposal for 2012 was enthusiastically approved by the Republican majority. By either substandard replacement or privatizing, it all but eliminates the so-called “entitlements.” Let’s spit in the eye of that moniker, shall we? Medicare and Social Security are NOT entitlements; they are insurance programs run by the government. Citizens make contributions with each paycheck over a lifetime ,which makes them partners with their provider, their interest shored by trust in the infallibility of those funds. The Pubs have rebranded that insurance as some kind of welfare give-away program, but that is not what those programs are or what they deliver.