It's my first day. It's my first post. I unfortunately live with a political junky, so it's all up in my face, which is a good thing, anything that provokes thought is good, yeah?

I haven't seen the point in voicing my opinion in the past but this election has me feeling like any voice of reason is better than the loudest voices in the room right now.

Dear Fellow Americans,

Re: 2016 Election Year and so much more

Well, I don’t even know where to start. I, like many of you, have not been able to avoid following the election to find our future president. It’s a train on fire, derailed with the sounds of screaming children ringing in our ears. Our leading candidates are getting louder. It is increasingly harder to ignore the circus side shows surrounding our debates, speeches and rallies and you know what, we shouldn’t ignore any of it.

Pay attention folks. Pay attention to all of it and I mean ALL of it. Our security, welfare system, public education and international relationships depend on us all to pay attention to the political circus that encompasses us.

I do not call it a circus in order to mock our election process, even though there could for sure be some improvements in that arena. I do however feel like political candidates and their teams are in fact making a mockery of our election process and they are not the only ones, the advent of Citizens United, corporations and privileged individuals have used their power, money, political connections and family names to sway a political election in order to benefit financially either directly or indirectly. If any of you are thinking that this is alright then you likely have nothing to learn from me. We shouldn’t allow it to be survival of the fittest (richest). It isn’t right that we allow those in a position of privilege and power to determine our welfare. It isn’t right that those of us that don’t actually live in our version of America determine the outcome for so many of our social and economic issues.

Whether you are in a position that you want for nothing or you spend the majority of your life in need of damn near all basic needs, pay attention to the side show that has become our government. Pay attention to the process that places politicians in office at a local, state and national level. Learn about it, follow it, get involved if it pulls you in (but only after you have done your research). Do not blindly follow. Ask questions and follow up by researching not only the things that you doubt but also the things that you are absolutely sure of. In doing this you will be able to stop trusting based on belief and start knowing based on fact.

This election cycle has brought us into an intriguing position. We have 4 very real possibilities regarding who will become our next commander and Chief. Each of them is unique and they each have their own set of ideas regarding the fate of our country. They have agendas, goals and personal beliefs that will directly influence their approach in leading our people.

We not only have that to consider, we have to take into account the other two branches of our government and how they will work with our new leader, or if they will work with them at all.

Having a Legislative Branch of our government that works with the Executive Branch is key to having a working system. All the promises made during an election mean nothing if the Legislative Branch of our government does not adhere to the wishes of the people. Which is what they should do, but because we have gerrymandered districts and elected officials that would rather score political points instead of doing their damn jobs, that doesn’t happen in our fair democracy.

This year one third of our Senate is up for reelection. The entirety of our House of Representatives is up for reelection. This is huge. This could mean a big difference in the way our government operates. Not only do we need to elect a presidential candidate that has the American people’s best interest at heart but we have to follow up by voting for a Congress that will fight for us state by state while working with the Executive Branch to make changes on a state and national level.

Having elected officials in place is meant to protect us from having a government in place that does not represent our needs. What happens to that process when the elected officials that are put in place act against our best interest in order to pursue the agendas of corporations and big money? It seems like what happens is that the rich get richer and we are stuck with negative or lethal repercussions.

We are left with two ends of a shit stick. That’s all we get. 31 flavors of ice cream but only two candidates.
“United we stand, divided we fall” is a phrase used all too often to instill fear instead of unity. There is truth to this statement and it seems like politicians feed off of this. Together we do stand a good chance and divided none of us stand a chance. As a nation divided by religion, racism, political affiliation, social standing and so many other issues it is important that we see where the dividing lines should be instead of allowing someone in a position of great power to decide them for us.

Because there are so many dividing lines across America it is extremely hard for us to unite when it comes to electing officials. We all have such different ideas regarding what our nation’s needs are.
Think about this. Do you vote? Do you allow your voice to be heard? Voter turnout in the United States is lower than any other major country. How can we expect a government that represents us based on a lower than 57% voter turnout? Because that means that, in a two party system, only 28.5% of people on each side of the aisle are voting. Barely a quarter of the populace. And that’s being gawddamn generous. Educate yourself, register to vote and get out there and mark your ballot. Our daily lives are full, I get that. I really do but if we do not make time to be involved we will continue to have a government that does not truly represent our country.

Do not allow for misinformation, research candidates statements, history and previous statements. Relying on the outward appearance of a political candidate is a whole lot like basing the content of a book on the cover.

Look into their past, poke and prod, who are they connected to? Who do they do business with? Have they fought for Civil Rights? Have they served in our Military? Have they served as a Civil Servant? Are they educated? Informed? Are they sincere? Are they qualified to run a country? Could their affiliations imply an agenda that will sway their position? Will they allow their personal beliefs to affect their discussions, when their beliefs do not fall in line with popular opinion? Discussions that will no doubt affect us as Americans. Do they hold interest in big money? OpenSecrets.org is a wonderful website for this information.

Do we want a candidate that has never wanted for anything at all? How can a candidate that has led a plush life possibly relate to the needs of the average American? How can a candidate who has always held interest in the wealthiest few possibly want what is best for our nation as a whole?
Will our peers take us seriously if we put a president in office that has a criminal or negligent checkered past (whether they got away with it or not). What about social acceptance and their immediate family? Will they hold up to the scrutiny? Any nude or semi nude photos floating around the internet? Things like this turn our government into a laughing stock and a target for scandal.

A lot of things are promised to American’s during an election. Some of these promises are in earnest and a lot more of them are meant to gain votes. So, who means what they say? I will leave you to research this. Intent is important.
My next question to you is as difficult to ask as it is to answer:

Why would you support a candidate who is beholden to special interests? By that I mean why support a government that caters to the richest few when it is against our best interest? Why wouldn’t you support a candidate that reads more like a Civil Servant than a Politician? Why wouldn’t you do everything that you could to keep the corrupt, bought and paid for candidates out of office? What about candidates with direct links to special interests? Isn’t it worth knowing before you vote?

Can we, as Americans, put aside our social and economic differences in order to elect a government that isn’t designed to help the rich get richer regardless of the cost to the rest of the country?

Our country needs our participation. We need question’s asked and answered. We absolutely need health care that leaves nobody out. We absolutely need education available to all. We absolutely need a government that will fight for us behind closed doors and not just in the public eye. We need a government that will do what is in the best interest of its people regardless of corporate pressure or threats. We need to demand that American businesses minimize outsourcing of production in order to avoid the cost of doing business. We need to lessen the loopholes that exist for multi – million and multi – billion dollar industries so that they are paying fair taxes on their earnings.

We need to evaluate issues and rate them accordingly by need. Our population has been divided and undereducated for far too long. We spend a relatively small amount on welfare and an alarmingly large amount on our military, don’t get me wrong. I support our military. I would like to see a lot more money go to Veteran’s Affairs. I would also really like to see our True Civil Servants taken care of properly. We spend so little on the things that matter the most while allowing so much to fall between the cracks.

Can we learn something from looking at how other countries view of us? Yes, we can, in the context that if you want to have a full picture of any situation it is better to view it through the eyes of an outside party. You can’t expect a true rendering of the facts while inside of a missile. You need to be able to view it from all angles. Relying on mainstream media for information will leave you unprepared and under-informed.