Americans are twenty days away from electing their President. The intensity of the last-minute campaign roadshows and debates are all part of the normal process. However, over the last few elections, it has become clear that elections are fought more by inciting partisanship, including bending the rules and changing the rules on an ad hoc basis. This election is very different from the last 50 years because it is about a fundamental shift from the political ideology with significant consequences, so go out and vote and make a difference.
In the past elections, the rules of a fair election won the trust of the voting public. Americans believed that Democracy was healthy, and elections were conducted fairly. The candidates represented the Democratic values despite their differences in the philosophy of governance. So it was easy to make decisions about who you were voting for because the basic principles were intact. There was a shared understanding of what American Values are and what we wanted to promote as a society.
Presidents won based on their characters, moral strength, and on their beliefs in war or peace, Big Government or small Government, (Which essentially was more about powers of the individual states versus a centralized Federal Government), about Government’s intrusion in our private lives dictating the dos and don’ts, about law and order, fairness in justice and above all, about Liberty and freedom for all. Our understanding of the political issues and the process was based on unbiased reporting in the media.
Our freedom and Liberty are so ingrained in the fabric of American life that most of us, whether born here or naturalized through the immigration process, take it for granted! We also take for granted that the balance between Liberty and Order is maintained and our civil rights of “Life, Liberty, and pursuit of Happiness” are inviolable. We have become so blasé that many of us have refrained from voting either out of apathy or jaded intellectualism.
Make a difference. You have the power.
However, I am urging you to think differently! It is one of the most consequential elections of our lifetime. It can result in a seismic shift in the form of governance that we will experience. It will not only impact our generations but the generations to come. Just realize that your participation is crucial in determining how you want to be governed. Your vote will influence the kind of future your children and grandchildren will face.
This election is a very different scenario compared to the previous contests over the last several decades. Once again, the old disagreement about the ideal form of Government is rearing its head. The differences between the old Federalists vs. a non-Federalist form of Government are getting a full play. Whereas the former believed that only Elites could manage governance well, the latter held that anyone in America could govern as well. That is at the heart of this struggle. So, it seems to me that even though it appears that the current election is about racism and inequality and fair justice on the surface, the real intent is to:
- Undo the Democracy by driving a wedge between haves and have-nots once again.
- Establish the supremacy of one religion over all other and undo the separation of church and politics.
- Continue to promote Capitalism as the mainstay of the economy.
- Discontinue America’s role as the keeper of world peace and the financier of world development, which was part and parcel of spreading the ideal of Democracy around the world.
- Hold other nations accountable for their population’s wellbeing by becoming more selective about the migration of people from different countries based on their needs rather than migrants’ needs.
- Keep and maintain American wealth within America, rather than let it funnel abroad through globalization and remove trade barriers.
- And above all, redefine the justice system to reflect the dominant political thought rather than balance law and order and accommodate the two differing ideologies.
What might make it challenging?
There may be many other hidden factors, but the following are the most discernible ones. Some problems that will still linger and create roadblocks:
Reconciling the current brand of Capitalism with the original civil rights.
The current taxation laws are skewed in favor of businesses allowing businesses to manipulate around the tax laws by deducting expenses and re-investments in firms in the name of creating economic growth. The reality is different. The tax treatment has built personal wealth for the wealthy, rather than re-investment in creating jobs and economic development. So unless we can shift the attention from equality to equitable distribution of wealth, we are just perpetuating inequality.
Fulfilling the nation’s needs for rebuilding against the national debt
Our national debt is of the gargantuan proportion and increasing by the minute. Reducing the debt is not going to be easy, especially in the light of citizens’ aversion to paying fair taxes. A major overhaul is needed in the lobbying laws designed to garner favors in policy-making for those who contribute the most money to individual politicians (Lobbying is a disguised vote-buying at the senate and congress level!) Only then will the tax laws be redesigned for fair and equitable contributions by the population toward managing the national debts.
We are a highly leveraged nation that cannot attend to our basic needs, such as repairing infrastructure and have to dip into the ordinary citizens’ safety nets who have saved for their lifetime for their retirement and social security. We have to cut programs for improving the standard of literacy and education for the large swaths of the population by cutting budgets for public education, even as the cost of private education is skyrocketing and unaffordable for the average Americans. The changing needs of industry and the economy will require impetus to forge technological knowledge. Future jobs will require higher degrees in engineering, science, technology, and math to get jobs and maintain the economy’s momentum. It is a major cultural shift from the American disdain for intellectualism to making education a priority so people can meet future jobs’ requirements. It is a heavy lifting.
Add to that our heavy dependence on a Consumerism based economy, which has resulted in consumers and households teetering on bankruptcy in case of job losses, which would tank the economy.
Retaining the American influence in world affairs
Withdrawing the American role from International participation is going to shrink America’s reputation as the strongest nation. It will undoubtedly affect international trade, which had provided American jobs until our overdependence on Consumerism as the engine for growth took our jobs abroad in search of maximizing profit margins and expanding the markets abroad. American markets were saturated in the mid-eighties. Now, trying to bring back the jobs at the American pay scales and garnering maximum profits will present significant challenges for balancing the economy.
Building healthy communities in America against the “Me” culture
The recent lack of civility and faction-ism and the battle for supremacy is calling for a significant overhaul in the culture if the “United” in the United States of America is to remain. It is challenging to build a cohesive supporting culture when everyone is only interested in looking out for themselves. America differed from most other countries in creating a vast middle class that could stave off hunger and hand to mouth existence. These Americans could own intellectual and land-based properties and experience a quality of life envied by the world. The American middle- class is endangered. Currently, our economy does not benefit a large number of population. Job losses may result in giving up the coveted idea of property ownership and will diminish the quality of life. America will be losing its global prestige and will become like a third world nation.
So what should your vote stand for?
Do we want to vote for Unity or go back to the old 13 colonies with its territorial wars and currencies and trade laws, which caused the nightmare that brought about the unification in the first place?
Don’t focus on the individual candidate that represents the party, but on the party’s platform. What will keep us as “United,” and what will break us apart?
Do we want to subjugate women’s civil rights to make all decisions related to themselves, including issues related to her body to a party’s platform? Do we want religious and political institutions charting the course of how women “should” live? Do we want economic growth for the country but not equal opportunities for all regardless of gender, race, or creed? Do we want equal access to Healthcare and wellbeing, or should it be treated as a matter of available financial resources to our families or us? How do we get Healthcare if we are poor or disabled or old? Should we be denied access and leave it to your fate?
Do not be swayed by slogans and hyperbole. Examine the statements in the promises from self –interest. How will it affect you individually? How will your vote make a difference to you and your community, and the country!
Promise vs. Performance
Closely examine the promises made and promises kept. Whose actual voting records resulted in real benefits to you personally and to your community? Look at the immediate benefits to you and see who holds a better future for your children and grandchildren.
You can look at the voting records of the U.S. Senators and Congress members by going to https://www.govtrack.us/congress/members/current.
There is a lot of bluster and hyperbole floating around in the heat of the election, and a plethora of slogans, political humor, and punditry spouted to grab your vote. Please ignore it. The only thing that should matter is the accurate record of actual proposals and accomplishments. Otherwise, it’s just empty words. Learn to tell the real from the fake. Please read a related post on my site about validating if something is fake or real on https://pamsprism.com/perspectives/trust-in-the-post-truth-era/.
Separate the Wheat from the Chaff
Check the reliable non-partisan fact-checking sites that are non-profit. The library at the Washington University in Washington, DC compiled the following list:
https://sunlightfoundation.com/
Let’s use our voices through our vote. It is a privilege and a right for which many sacrificed their lives. Let’s not fritter it away.