Mighty Yellowstone

So Obama did a little fly fishing in the Gallatin and took the kids to Yellowstone. What a great way to refresh!

As a friend of mine suggested in a recent post on his blog, Blue Moose Democrat , America is sorely in need of a weekend! I can't think of a better way to spend one.

If visiting Yellowstone does nothing more, it reminds us of what an incredibly beautiful country we live in and how worthwhile it is to preserve it.

During the fishing trip there were no cameras or reporters allowed. The conversation ranged from land issues to their personal lives like how he and Michelle are trying to keep the kids grounded considering the circus that surrounds them. They even got on a first name basis.

Maybe we ought to send the entire Congress and the entire press corp, including the pundits, to Yellowstone for a day of fishing and taking in the sites. They just might come back awed by something other than themselves.

As for Obama, in this scenario I'd not mind casting a line or sharing a beer with him myself! He's sounds far more like the Barack Obama I supported. A husband, a dad gone fishing with the guys. How totally American!

Why Are We So Angry?

How is it we've gone from healthy debate about health care reform to worrying about the safety of our President?

Something is happening to us that is unsettling to say the least. Everyone seems to be mad at someone. It's gone way beyond simple annoyance. What's causing it? Is it the instant communication we now have available to us like Facebook and Twitter? Is it because there seems to be no such thing as objective "news" anymore? The fact that everything we read, hear or see is slanted toward the political stance of management? The fact that there are so many people like me, bloggers, offering up our daily opinions be they based of fact or not? Venting our frustrations more than praising where praise is due?

Whatever it is it's becoming epidemic. Everyone seems compelled to take a side be it rational or not. I see it all around me. I see the blogmeister of a local newspaper's community blog having to put people in the "cooler" for less than civil discourse about others participating in blog threads. I see loose knit communities of locals finding fault with everything local government does. I see that same government thumbing their nose at those groups. The broader the spectrum involved the more the circumstance escalates. It's ugly!

It has gotten so bad fringe groups like the neo-Nazis and militias are seizing on these frayed emotions to rekindle their influence. What we have is a cacophony of voices which everyone is contributing to yet no one is listening!

It seems to me we are all at fault to one degree or another. The media for insinuating intentions of those who have different opinions than their own. Politicians snarling and growling like a bunch of junk yard dogs. Citizens shouting at the top of their lungs just trying to be heard.

We have a war escalating yet due to pressure no new troops will be committed leaving those already deployed to the mercies of undermanned combat. That angers me. Yes it does.

Our homes are nowhere near the value they were a mere couple of years ago. We can't sell ours because we can't expect a buyer. That angers me. Yes, it does. Our savings and investments are no longer what they were when we retired; the foundation we were counting on for our retirement is dwindling and there is nothing we can do about it. That angers me.

I won't even start on health care. It isn't just the "death squads" that seem to have become its symbol. It's the vagueness of how it's written leaving it open to any interpretation someone wants to give it. That leaves we who are obliged to it vulnerable to the whims of whoever happens to wield the power at any given time.

At the outset race had nothing to do with the anger. It does now. When someone suggests people are fearing for the life of the President it automatically takes on the aspect of racism just of because of who he is. What a giant step backward!

It seems ironic to me that a country which rose up in the groundswell of hope and change have, in six short months, found themselves losing hope on a daily basis and fearing any more change.

That does not make me angry. The cause of it does. The fact of it makes me sad.

Comic Relief

I never thought I'd be so happy to see Joe the Plumber pop up in the news again! Actually we need some comic relief before the lid blows off the country.

It seems he's going to add
"comedian" to his already lengthy resume. I thought he always was one; he certainly couldn't be taken seriously as a political consultant or war correspondent! Never-the-less he's signed on to appear in the 16th annual "Funniest Celebrity in Washington" competition. Funny, I thought he was from Ohio. He does get around!

As I said, though, we need a release before things get totally out of hand. I'm inclined to lay blame for the unrest directly at the feet of the politicians and the media. Not the people. After all, the politicians are the ones doing the fear mongering by calling us evil and unpatriotic and Nazi-like. Not the people asking the questions. The politicians who are being asked!

The media isn't helping matters any by hyping the discord rather than digging for the true wording in the legislation and by not reminding us there is as of now no legislation ready for the President's signature. Only that which has come from the House. We've yet to see a Senate version what's more the conciliation of both!

One of my readers mentioned a comment her son made, in effect saying someone was likely to get shot before this is over at the rate it's going. I should hope he is wrong! However, when media commentators fuel the fire it doesn't help. Take what Ed Schultz said on his syndicated radio show last Tuesday.

It's almost as if every one of these town hall meetings is turning into "The Jerry Springer Show". And there are many Americans right now who are starting to fear for the safety of the president of the United States. All over health reform. Folks, these people are psycho, that's what they are.

Sometimes I think they want Obama to get shot. I do! I really think that there are conservative broadcasters in this country who would love to see Obama taken out. They "fear" socialism, they fear Marxism. They fear that the United States of America won't be the United States of America anymore.

There is nothing funny in that kind of rhetoric! Planting the seed should be considered criminal!

Under The Radar

I was watching the President present the 2009 Medal of Freedom to an impressive array of recipients. How great, I thought. Here we had gays, lesbians, blacks, whites, Hispanics - even a gentleman from Bangladesh and a Crow Indian Chief. Stephen Hawking, Sandra Day O'Connor, Billy Jean King, Desmond Tutu and Chita Rivera among them.

As I read the news reports on the recipients I found there are already those who say some are not deserving. I don't know what criteria is used, but all are deserving of recognition for their achievements in life.

The idea that fault is being found bothered me. Along with calling people unpatriotic and evil regarding the health care debate, I wonder what is wrong with us! Far more troubling things are happening beneath the surface than healthy, if sometimes rowdy, debate on an important piece of pending legislation and celebrating great achievement by 16 of the world's best!

And what might that be? The re-emergence of militias! Living in Idaho, I'm well aware of the extent of their local history and the fact that since the death of white supremest leader Richard Butler, they had either moved on or quieted down. Until a couple of months ago when rock weighted bags containing their literature began appearing on people's lawns.

Just this past week end our local police were able to apprehend the offenders and cite them for littering. Hiding behind "freedom of speech" they were even tossing them at children playing. In an interview one of the offenders said he has moved the Aryan Nations headquarters to Athol, a tiny cross roads community about 10 miles north of us. They're baaaaack!

Apparently similar activities have been going on around the country though they seem to be concentrated in our area of the Pacific Northwest, the Midwest and the South. Researchers at the Southern Poverty Law Center have found "at least 50 new groups in the last few months". That's frightening.

What really caught my attention was when the reporter claimed the Idaho Citizen's Constitutional Militia, yet another organization of the same ilk, was recruiting for a sniper. I went to their website to see if true and found that they are also looking for a Chaplin and lawyer. Wow! That sounds like they mean business. All of it bad! And hiding behind God to boot!

A lot of this resurgence is because we elected our first black President but factoring in is the state of the economy and what they see as intense distrust of the government - the fuel on which they feed. It has spurred their recruiting efforts, that is an undeniable truth because it's happening in my community. That people can hate to the extent these people do is something I do not comprehend. I do comprehend that they exist.

It's things like this that remind me how important it is to get outside of my own self-interests and pay attention to what's happening around me though I'm not sure there is anything I can do. If their efforts at recruitment take hold, however, be assured, nothing good will come of it!

Who's Doing The People's Work?

In a lot of respects, the people are. We're not getting straight answers from either side of the aisle on health care reform. Oops! It's now being termed "insurance reform" which is closer to what it should be.

I'm willing to wager a lot of folks turning up at the town hall meetings have done what Hub has done. Down loaded the bill and read it. Especially those in our age group. We're the ones targeted by most of the scare tactics. And a lot of the truths being obscured.

That being said, I was surprised to see how many lawmakers are off on junkets. Maybe they feel it's safe haven. If no one can question them, they don't have to answer.

I would think the health care issue is of enough importance they could have postponed many of these trips. After all, it's their constituency asking the questions and for everyone off on a junket, there are entire districts without a source of information which can be held accountable.

Who are some of these lawmakers and where are they? According to The Wall Street Journal they're off to Europe with their wife or island hopping around the Pacific. Why? Well, the dozen that are on a 10 day trip in the Pacific are supposedly studying how immigration laws are applied in the Marianas, a U.S. territory. I don't know. I'd be inclined to pick up the phone and ask.

They are also slated to visit Samoa, Hawaii, Guam and Palau. No doubt to see if it's a suitable place to park the Uighurs still in Guantanamo. I especially like Representative Ellison Twittering his way around Africa bemoaning the fact he caught the sniffles while studying gender based violence in Kenya. Gender based violence in Kenya?

According to the 2000 census, Ellison's district had a population of 614,935. In the 2008 Congressional elections 322,081 people voted. That's a fair chunk of people not having a town meeting during this Congressional recess. Multiply that by the district populations of the others and you're getting into real numbers.

The idea that people have gotten engaged is wonderful. That it has gotten unruly is not unexpected considering the vagueness of what's being proposed paired with the fact it affects all of us.

I give a big thumbs up to those who stayed home to face their constituents. After watching Senator Claire McCaskill, D-MO, stand her ground I've gained a lot or respect for her. Her answers did not satisfy many and that in of itself is the message.

Sort it out and get it right before passing it into law. I guess the Democrats on those junkets are so sure of their majority that they feel no need to subject themselves to their constituents.

They best enjoy their tax payer funded escapades. If bad legislation is what passes they may find a "staycation" might have been the better choice.