America Has Hit Rock Bottom

It was bound to happen.  That big "thud" that you heard after the last election was this country hitting rock bottom.  This country is in a very, very bad place and it's not going to get better any time soon.

Racism is as prevalent as it's ever been over the past 50 years.  Politicians are more corrupt than every before.  Jobs are non-existent despite the fact that our infrastructure is crumbling like an Oreo in Shaquille O'Neal's back pocket.  Violent crime rates are higher than giraffe nostrils while cops are shooting first and not asking questions later.

All of this comes from an accumulation of things over the past 30 or 40 years.  Because of that, it can't be fixed overnight.  But make no mistake about it.  It can be fixed.

Well, not racism.  That's never going away in the U.S.  This country was built on racism, so it has no choice but to continue to spawn racism.  You can't plant an apple tree and expect oranges, no matter how hard you wish for them.

But, everything else can be fixed.  We can vote crooked politicians out of office if we actually took time to think.  We get swayed by name recognition and political party loyalty when we step into a voting booth.  And while I'm on the topic, let me step on my soapbox for a minute...

(steps on soapboax)

Black people need to stop voting for Democrats as a default.  The only reason that I say that is because Democrats are so confident that we're going to vote for them, that they don't even try to do anything substantial for us.

When I was a child, I remember countless Democratic candidates coming to my neighborhood to speak to the voters.  They asked questions and acted like they truly wanted to earn our votes.  As an adult, do you know how many Democrats have visited my current neighborhood?

Zero.

I've been visited by plenty of Jehovah's Witnesses, but the next Democratic candidate to step into my driveway will be the first.  And I've lived here for 20 years.

As for Republicans...  They refuse to even make the effort to meet with black people because they know that we're not going to vote for them any way.  Black people got upset that Donald Trump didn't meet with certain black "leaders".  Why should he?  For PR?  Would you waste your time visiting someone that you knew was biased against you?

No, you probably wouldn't.  Until black people make Democrats earn their votes once again, then we'll keep getting what we're getting.  You can't do the same thing over and over and expect different results.  That's just dumb.

(steps off soapbox)

Dag, what was I talking about again?  Oh, yeah.  'Murrica...

Until we do away with political parties, our country will continue to spiral out of control.  How can you have a United States if everyone is divided?  How can you say "united, we stand, but divided, we fall" when it's always "us vs. them"?  If we simply took the time to think, we could turn this country around.  The people have the power.  We're just too lazy or dumb to use it.

Freakin' sheep.

Move Over Oscar-Mayer! There's a New Weiner!

So, NY-Dem, Anthony Weiner, finally admitted to what everyone pretty much knew last week: he sent junk photos to some lady.

Aside from it not being in your best interest to be involved in a penis scandal with the last name "Weiner," it's also a bad idea to lie about something that would inevitably be proven. Not only did Weiner admit to sending a tweet of his underwear-bulging junk to some woman, he also mentioned that there were other women, ages unknown, he did the same before and during his marriage.

Now, personally, I don't care that he cheated. That's between Weiner and Mrs. Weiner and no concern of mine. The issue of him lying does bring his integrity in question. It now makes you wonder if he will (if he hasn't already) lie over something a lot more corrupt and detrimental to his constituents. The funny part about all of this is Weiner's refusal to leave social networking alone. He claims that he will keep his Facebook and Twitter accounts open and play it straight going forward. He also said that he's not quitting his job.

You know what? I don't blame him. Should he quit? Probably, but this isn't anything new in politics. Guys in politics have cheated since ever and it's just the perk of being a member of the "Good Ol' Boys' Network." If you get caught up in a scandal then there's a fake investigation. Not to see if you've violated ethics, but to see if your presence hurts the political party's PR or not. If the investigation drags on long enough, over time, something else will happen that will cause people to forget about you and what you did. Then people who only vote all Republican or all Democrat will vote you back in office because loyalty is more important than having values.

So, the man who has caused Oscar-Mayer's stock to drop (I stole that from a tweet), will now go back to his normal day-to-day life. He's thankful to be in a career that thrives on not doing your best, but showing that your opponent does worse. He's thankful that Oprah is no longer on the air to interview his wife (who I'm sure has book publishing company execs camping in her driveway). Most importantly, he's thankful that the tweets and posts filling the social networks are saying that he's "bigger" than Brett Favre.

Hey, while you're here, check out my guest posts that I've done over at Sonia's site (LogAllot.com) and Brandon's site(LostInIdaho.me)

How Do You Protect Your Brand? (guest post) ~ LogAllot

Mommy, Look at the Penguins! (guest post) ~ My Own Private Idaho

If You Don't Vote, Then Shut It!

Approximately 213 million voting-age citizens were eligible to vote in the 2008 presidential election but only 186 million of them were actually registered. Those figures mean that almost 13% of all eligible voters in our country remain excluded from participation in our political process.

Those 13% need to keep their mouths shut until they vote. I don't want to hear about your high medical bills, taxes or any other problems you may have. You don't have the right to complain, loser! If you don't vote, then shut it!



And I don't want to hear the argument "what's it going to change anyway?" If you want change, then vote for candidates who actually understand what you're going through and not these fat cats who get into office and find new ways to take our money.

The only people who aggravate me just as much as non-voters are people who vote for a certain party regardless if the candidate is any good or not. So, if you vote (D) or (R) just because you prefer the party and not the candidate, then I have no sympathy for you and your problems either.

My concerns only lie with the few people in the U.S. who are actually trying to make this country better by putting the best person in office, not their favorite party. Voting along party lines is the equivalent of voting for every contestant on American Idol with mohawks just because you like stylish hair. "If doesn't matter if they can sing, but if that hair looks 'rad', then you have my vote!"



Sounds stupid to you? Good. Now you know how I feel.

November will determine who controls Congress: Republicans or Democrats? This election is actually more important than the presidential election because let's face it: the president is a figure head. He truly has has no power. Congress basically runs the country.

The problem is that a lot of people don't know that. They'll turn out for a president, but won't turn out for other elections which are actually more important.

Pay attention, people. Pay attention to the things going on in the world.

Join the discussion here!