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On Friday, my wife and I attended "parent’s day" at my daughter’s school. The headmaster for the school welcomed us by saying he was going to talk several subjects including politics; when he said politics, he definitely caught my attention. What happened from
there was disturbing. It was disturbing because the subject of
politics involved the polarization of Republicans and Democrats on the
school campus; both in the middle and high school. Based on what
the headmaster said, it appeared that some teachers were polarized in
their political beliefs. The polarization was leading to a failure
to intelligently discuss the issues in this year’s election. The audience quickly
learned why the headmaster had his job. His diplomacy in dealing
with the subject made us feel comfortable. His approach showed an
ability to reach common ground, to find consensus, to give up a little
to gain a lot. During the
conversation I thought about what the Democrats and Republicans are
doing in the current election year. America’s political parties
are polarized and this polarization is leading to a failure to discuss
the issues facing us. Instead of talking
about our economy, we have the Swift Vote Veterans for Truth. The
Swift Boat Veterans for Truth is an organization whose goal is to
"de bunk" John Kerry’s 30 year old military record in
Vietnam. The Swift Vote’s purpose is to bring up anything
negative, whether truthful or not, allowing the President to win his
election. The Swift Boat
Veterans for Truth is an example of the polarization in our political
system. We have become so polarized the issues do not count.
Candidates for office are spending time, and money, on collateral
subjects that have nothing to do with the issues. We are
forgetting the importance of addressing issues; we are forgetting that a
discussion of issues leads to solutions. While we listen to the
Swift Boat Veterans talk about old history, our deficit continues to
grow. Our economic future and the economic future of our children and
their grandchildren are at stake. What we do with the economy
today will have lasting affects for years to come. Take, for example, the
deficit. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office paints a
gloomy picture for the economic stability of our country. The New
York Times reports that the Congressional Budget Office estimates the
national debt will climb by 2.3 trillion dollars over the next 10 years.
While the national debt climbs our president is making tax cuts
permanent. The President’s tax cuts will cost an additional $1.9
trillion by the end of 2014. The House and Senate Republicans have
added an additional 13 billion in business tax breaks without regard to
spending. Moreover, this President is proposing additional federal
programs, federal programs that will increase spending. Common sense dictates
that a cut in revenues must be accompanied by cuts in spending.
This President, a Republican, is cutting revenues and raising spending,
spending unrelated to the war in Iraq. By the end of his second term,
President Bush will leave us with the largest deficit in American
history. Why aren’t we discussing this issue? The polarization is
caused by a great political divide and by the actions of groups like the
Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, a group diverting our attention from the
issues to collateral subjects having no impact on our future.
Politicians have successfully deflected our attention away from a
national economic crisis. The polarization is
affecting our youth. Our middle school headmaster told us
political discussions in our school degraded into name calling
arguments, with students calling each other "morons."
The name calling deflected the discussion from the issues to discussions
resulting in personal attacks. Children learn from
adults. The adults are deflecting our attention from issues of
national importance to name-calling, false accusations, and political
mudslinging. We are becoming a nation losing its ability to find
common ground to a nation with a great divide. Unfortunately the
politicians fan the flames... It is time for the
voters to throw water on the fire. If we do not, we will continue to see
our children call each other morons instead of intelligently discussing
issues affecting their future. Stuart F. James
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