Are we a country of Democrats & Republicans or Americans?

         With all the bipartisan bickering going on daily in Americans lives, I started to wonder where is it all headed? It seems as if polarizing figures such as Sarah Palin seem to be popping up every week with increasingly outlandish rhetoric. More than ever our politicians have been making child hood playground fights seem reasonable in comparison. This disturbing trend towards partisanship now threatens to derail any plan to improve this country which is still in the process of trying to recover from the worst economic downturn since The Great Depression. I personally think if this continues to get worse and worse, the overall effectiveness of a two party system will have to be brought into question.

           Increasingly we seem to be dividing ourselves into two distinctly separate America's. On one side, those that look at Rush Limbaugh as a serious party leader, Glen Beck as a stout Constitutional historian, and the aforementioned Sarah Palin as ripe for the presidency on one side; those who would like to give President Obama a chance on the other. Both, the right and left are choosing to steadily distinguish the differences between themselves, increasing the gulf between them, while holding on stubbornly to the "We are always right" tone". Meanwhile the citizens that these politicians are supposed to represent, sit patiently on the sidelines waiting for something to happen.

         It kills me when politicians speak so confidently about the wishes of the American people. Politicians only represent the interest of their party, not the people. If they did represent the people, and we lived in a true Democracy, we could utilize the internet to cast votes; majority rules.  Now I dont owe loyalty to either party although my political leanings tend to be on the Democrats side much of the time. In my opinion they are the best of two bad choices. I have a strong feeling amongst my generation, that before its said and done we will have more people identifying themselves as independent than ever before.

         I hate to say it, but as much as we like to preach the benefits of Democracy, it's really starting to feel like a controlled anarchy. As our economic strength in the world declines we put ourselves at further risk as The House and The Senate remains gridlocked. Republicans have come right out and said that they are committed to seeing to it that Barack Obama's presidency is a failure. When I hear formerly respected news columnist, commentators, politicians, and would be presidential candidates casually calling the leader of the free world, our president, everything from a Socialist, to a Nazi. Limbaugh went as far as calling Obama a flat out idiot. To many people, this is not only disrespectful to President Obama, but to the entire country as a whole, not to mention the hits taken to our image abroad.

          These are just a few examples of how party affiliation continues to shape the views and attitudes of millions of Americans. I no longer look at politics as entertainment. Every time I watch, it makes me wonder what happened to this great country. Maybe we should rename it The United States of Republicans & Democrats!

       

What’s The Problem with Organized Religion?

            As the world spirals toward a bleak and uncertain future, it is increasingly becoming more and more imperative for those who make up the human family to seriously analyze the world we live in and the religious traditions we agree to live under in our respective lands. We must decide for ourselves whether or not they are beneficial to world unity or dangerous to mankind. It is time for some soul searching. Our inability to come to grips with the true nature of religion no doubt puts society as we know it in a precarious situation. Now is the time when we must learn to set all prejudices aside, and begin the process of examining the barriers that continue to prevent us from living up to our true potential if we are to ever attain the lasting peace we all long for. 

           This will not be easy for many when considering that some traditions have been firmly in place for several thousand years. On top of that most indoctrinated into organized religions have had it continuously ingrained into their heads since small children by their spiritual leaders that to merely question their faith is a sin. The aim is to discourage inquiry. Sometimes questioning accepted doctrines can result in the complete banishment of the inquisitor.

 It is quite astonishing to think that even in our modern society were science is advancing at break neck speed, shattering many centuries old superstitions in the process, religion somehow manages to maintain its vice like grip on the minds of many. Daily news reports continue to show that as the world becomes increasingly interconnected, divisions between races and global conflicts between nations are on the rise instead of on the mend as one might expect. Watch a little television and you will discover there is no shortage of “Doom and Gloom” Pastors and so called Prophets happily predicting and in some cases eagerly awaiting mankind's demise in the near future. Is it possible these poisonous thought processes have the potential to equate to a self fulfilling prophecy?

             Is it not disturbing that we find so many people are extremely pessimistic about the future? Could it be that the “us versus them” dynamic spelled out among organized religion has dulled the hopes of mankind?  Many wonder if civilization can survive without the moral principals of the religious system. But is man really dependent on an agreed upon set of rules spelled out by religious traditions in order to behave ourselves and protect ourselves from each other? Or can it be said that what we define as morality is an innate quality already built into the gene of the human species? 

           There are those who see religion as a gift from God. One cannot deny that religious institutions have done some good, but how much longer can we ignore the evils it has done in Gods name? People point to religion as a force for good by an overwhelming margin all over the world. But with the growing severity of the clashes between religion I wonder if its time we asked ourselves if the positive aspects of organized religion out weigh the negative? What do you think?