CrankyOldGuy.com

Here we go again… Our public officials being “outraged” and then cowering behind the words of indignant inaction.

When is enough, really enough?  When “We the People” get off of our lazy, entitled, self-involved asses, to DO SOMETHING other than just tweet, FB post, and Like/Thumbs Up about the obvious.

The obvious?  Our country is so horribly broken by special interests, and lobbyists, that the electoral process is easily rigged, hacked, and controlled, FROM THE INSIDE.  We the People have no real voice in politics, because we have decided to hand our power off to special interests, media, and government, in a way that has actually diminished our freedom, destroyed our sense of well-being, and created a culture that is so bereft of common sense, that we have been dragged back to a way of life that is now mimicking one of the worst decades in our history…the 1960s.

Don’t look now folks, but “the Cold War” and the threat of nuclear war is back…along with racial unrest, gun violence, and political corruption. Whoohoo! The “good old days” are here again!

We cloak ourselves in Social Movements that do little in the way of real solutions.  The “Me Too” movement?  Pfffttt… sorry…but as long as we continue to support elected officials who are part of the problem (Trump and Billary, are in the same camp), the movement is a mockery of ambiguity.  If you are going to take down Garrison Keillor, and leave the Commander in Tweet untouched, you don’t have my support for your “movement.”  But more so…if you can create a national fervor, driven by the “Hollywood crowd” who do more to perpetrate sexism than any other business entity, while not using the same momentum and power to stop the taking of innocent lives by random acts of domestic terror with Assault Rifles…again…your movement is impotent.

But, lets’ dive into the real problem…

Is the problem that we don’t hold our elected officials to a standard of competence, asking them the hard questions that would improve governance?   Nope.

The REAL problem with our country, our culture, and any hope of improving our future, is that we don’t ask OURSELVES the hard questions…and don’t hold OURSELVES accountable.

WE THE PEOPLE…are the problem.

This is a nation of people who are the most privileged and therefore entitled, in the entire world. Even those on welfare here, would be considered “rich” in most developing nations, which constitute more than 90% of the world’s population.  More than 70% of the world’s population lives on $30-$50 per MONTH.   So…when cell phone and social media penetration is at more than 100% (yes…some have multiple devices) in the United State (including the impoverished), and more than 81% of ALL Americans, having a FaceBook account, you would think that the “Power of the People” to reach consensus, and hold government accountable would be easier than ever before.

Not. So. Much.

Facebook is part of the problem…in that they constantly shift their “Feed Algorithms” around to keep the action hot on the most active posts. Unfortunately for us, that is usually inane garbage about celebrities, sports, and boosted “fake news” (from both sides)  that is blasted up the “trending ladder” by millions of “fake bot accounts” used to “repost” stories that those who want to influence the masses, control.

Russians?  Hell yes. But, MOSTLY those who are paid by “special interests” to influence those who are easily influenced…We The People.

Do you actually think it is coincidence that the NRA is being investigated for money laundering of Russian “donations” to the Trump campaign?  But, more important…knowing that this is even a remote possibility, HOW DO NRA SUPPORTERS CALL THEMSELVES TRUE AMERICANS???????

There it is. The first hard question–with an obvious answer–that everyone is afraid to ask on social media, let alone in person.

But, I am asking it now…

I have friends, and family members who are gun owners, many of whom support the NRA as the “protector of legal firearm ownership.”  Of course…we know that this has become one of the worst national jokes, making our country more dangerous than ever before, because we are too lazy to really do anything about it.

The Gun Debate is no longer a debate. It has devolved into the same kind of never-ending, circular conversation as “Do you believe in God?”  And at some point…we are going to have to ask  both at the same time, because it is becoming DAMN TOUGH to actually be a true Christian, and a supporter of the NRA.

Yep. I just did it again.

We are at a point in our country’s history, when the two have become so inextricably intertwined (the Christian Right, and Extreme Conservatism) that we have to start pointing out ambiguity where it is the most obvious.  “Right to Life”…without Protecting Life from random acts of violence from assault weapons?  Ambiguity at its worst.

But, the “Left” isn’t without blame on this one.  As long as we “take to social media” without actually DOING anything except pointing fingers…we are as much responsible as those who overtly support a “hands off gun restriction laws” approach.

Look. This is complicated stuff…because we have been so completely LAZY about dealing with the symptoms.  We are a society that continues to say, “We have a cancer…” but then continues to smoke, eat carcinogens, and drink until our livers erode into raisins. That is a metaphor…but probably also true about cancer in general. But, I digress…

Gun Laws, like any other laws, only change when you make it so clear that “EVERYONE” is responsible, that answers become obvious, and those responsible, are held accountable.

We did it with the “Me Too,” movement (mostly), which is a movement of lives being ruined by sexual power…why the HELL CAN’T WE DO IT WITH GUN CONTROL…WHERE LIVES ARE BEING TAKEN, DESTROYED, AND DEVISTATED by our own stupidity and inaction???

Yes. Louis CK masturbated in front of a bunch of peers, who didn’t ask for him to do it. One guy…with a Semi-Automatic Weapon…KILLS countless innocent victims…every week of the year…and we can’t figure out a solution???????

OH… and let’s not forget the fact that while Trumpski and his movement of brown shirts cloaked in suits are carting off Dreamers…NONE of the School Shooters, or any of the other domestic mass shootings were perpetrated by illegal immigrants. None. Not one.

Sorry. But, I’m done talking.

For the foreseeable future… get used having me poke you in the eye, until we can solve this ridiculously easy problem to solve.  I.E.  STOP SELLING ASSAULT WEAPONS TO THE PUBLIC.  PERIOD.

They are military weapons. Hunters don’t use them…and “Sport shooters” can damn well use something else (like an air rifle).

Time to get to work. I’m done dancing around the issues.  Be prepared to make a difference, or keep turning your head away from common sense.