Election years are all about making a choice. Choosing a direction that you feel our government should be going in. Sometimes those choices are easy. Sometimes, not so much…. This election cycle we are handed the ‘not so much’ set of choices.
Rhetoric is thick out there. Like swimming in nine day old porridge. Sifting through the first up links on the internet is all about spin. And television media??? …. Wow!!! You are bombarded with other people’s interpretations of what just happened. The slant is the thing… depending on who is doing the writing, and what they want you to believe.
For myself, I find that what is most valuable, is to hear the actual speeches, in full. I have a brain. I’m perfectly capable of determining, for myself, what I see, and hear, and how I feel about it. I have history to go by, and experience. I can sift through the bombast, and the promises, and see where a stated course will take things. I can anticipate how the whine of a sentence will influence others, and how that will affect my life, and yours. I’m not so easily influenced by flattery… not anymore. I’ve seen where that course takes you also. It’s never good; whether individually, or nationally followed. Flattery is always used by con artists to lull you into a false confidence, while they take everything you have.
I used to make the mistake of believing that if I didn’t have very much, a con artist wouldn’t be interested in what I had. I was wrong. What ever you have, someone else is always interested in taking, if you don’t guard it well.
In this election season, as in all of them, we must look to what we have, and guard it well. Who is trying to take something, and what are they telling us? Are they using flattery to keep us calm? Or giving us false confidence? What is the aim? What do they want, that we have? In their ability to get things done, do they have Our best interests at heart? or theirs?
Remember that any governments first job is to protect it’s citizens from foreign takeovers. That’s what the military is for. Its second job is to protect the citizens from corruption. That’s what laws are for.
The rest is deal making. Deals can hurt us, or help us. Who will do the job in a way that most benefits the whole country, or our state? or our local communities, for those elections in your local area.
Don’t let the side notes take your mind off the end result. Know that you’re not electing family members, that hairstyles, or suit styles don’t determine the outcomes of negotiations, and that celebrities aren’t necessarily smarter than you are. Decide for yourself.
Remember that character does count…. which often as not, leaves us with few choices, in the end. Since no one is perfect …. whose imperfections appear to be mostly in the past? Whose recent activities are indicators of trust? or corruption? Who would you trust with your life, if push came to shove?
In the end, that’s what this is about; your life. Protect it. You are valuable. You have something to contribute to the society as a whole. You are a valuable part of the community fabric. Who will help that fabric to be stronger? And while you are trying to decide, don’t forget to ask for divine guidance. Don’t forget to pray. We need that help, now, as ever.
Other links you might like:
https://emariaenterprises.wordpress.com
https://themusicofpoetry.wordpress.com/category/poetry-2/stanzas/
Speak Kind to Yourself
© Ellen M Lattz and emariaenterprises, llc 2016.
Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author, Ellen M. Lattz, and/or blog owner, is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Ellen M. Lattz, and emariaenterprises with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
Links I’ve seen:
Defining Values for Politics 