Pork Barrel Politics

I had an interesting conversation with my neighbor. He brought up a subject that’s been on my mind, but I hadn’t been sure how to write about it yet.

There is a lot of controversy and bashing whenever Governor Sununu vetoes a bill. I’ve often wondered why he would veto something that sounds like it would be so beneficial… but I also know, bills are not a simple, one-subject. Voting to accept one bill means also accepting a lot of other bills which are not being publicized. (Otherwise known as pork barrel politics.)

I first heard the term “pork” years ago but never paid much attention. Then, during the COVID pandemic, I began finding out about all the other bills attached to the COVID bills which had absolutely nothing to do with COVID. In other words, millions of taxpayers’ dollars fund other bills having nothing to do with the promoted bill!

The definition of pork barrel politics is: “… the legislator's practice of slipping funding for a local project into a budget. The project may have nothing to do with the bill and may benefit only the legislator's home district. Before a bill gets to a vote, pork-barreling has often greatly inflated its costs through the addition of various legislators' pet projects.”

In other words, the legislature and politicians put together a good-sounding bill which gets all the media attention. But then they attach a lot of other bills which no one ever hears about (unless they do a ton of research), and which furthers the politicians’ personal agendas. And there’s also the “I’ll vote for your bill if you vote for mine” behind-the-scenes manipulating.

So, when a governor vetoes a do-good bill, it could be because of other wording in attached bills and nothing to do with the main bill. Perhaps this is all a lesson in looking below the surface. It’s easy to take a partially heard statement (whether purposely misrepresented or just misunderstood) and fly off the handle. Too many times we only hear a part of a line of a speech or bill and what the speaker intended becomes grossly twisted.

Maybe the most important question is always to ask, “What exactly do you mean by that?”

And, unfortunately, we can’t trust the media to report the truth. It’s all about interpretation and who’s doing the reporting. And too, how many people want to spend the time researching and double checking everything the government (whether state or federal) is doing? Aren’t we supposed to be able to trust those who are supposedly representing us?

We should all be informed about the entirety of the bills being passed.

A big term being used these days is “transparency.” Where’s the transparency in all this? 

Listening to Elders

Now that I’m up there in my years and experiencing many of the issues older people deal with, I wish I had listened more to my Mum. I remember getting so exasperated with her when all (it seemed) she would talk about was her getting old problems. It got so all she’d talk about was this pain or that and either being constipated or having diarrhea… and how she was sure the doctors had a magic pill to make people better, but they just wouldn’t give them out.

(As my friend Nan always says, “The medical profession doesn’t make money off healthy people.”)

When I was younger, I saw my mother’s comments about her health as complaints. She wouldn’t take any advice. It seemed she just wanted to complain. And yes, some people are like that. I had another friend who used to call my mother and aunt “The Moan and Groan Sisters.”

And I think about all the comedians who have always made “old people” jokes. And yes, it was funny… because it is important to be able to laugh about some things in life. But, too, it’s also an opportunity to learn and understand. It helps to know these issues are things many of us deal with as we get older.

These days, now that I’m dealing with some of the same issues Mum used to complain about, I understand there is a need to talk about it. Not as complaining but as part of a life story. There are issues we all end up dealing with, such as: joint pain, dry skin, sagging, being unsteady on your feet, hearing and eyesight diminishing, being tired a lot, et. al., and it helps to talk about it, get it off your chest, so to speak. (Or, as I like to say, out of my head because I easily get caught up in a downward spiral when my mind keeps on and on about whatever is bothering me in the moment.)

Unfortunately, I heard in Mum’s voice the “woe is me” tone. Maybe that’s why I didn’t really listen. And maybe there was a part of me that wouldn’t accept that she was declining, so I didn’t want to listen. I didn’t want to face losing her. I wanted my mum to be healthy and active like she used to be… but that isn’t life.

Now I feel I’m getting the same way in some aspects. I don’t want to sound whiny, and it bothers me that I might. Perhaps that makes me wish even more that Mum was here to talk to. Is this what you experienced, Mum? Did you feel bad I refused to listen or let you talk about it?

I wish I had taken time not only to listen to Mum but to actually talk to her about what she was feeling… to have a conversation with more compassion and understanding. I feel guilty I hadn’t done so. Often, I look over to her photo and say, “I hear you, Mum. I understand now.”

My eyes fill with tears because I wish we had had these conversations when she was still her. I wish we could have these conversations now. I’d like to ask her more direct questions about what she was experiencing. Oh, there are a lot of things I wish I’d asked her about her life.

The lesson: Talk to people, especially your older family members – and even the younger. Find out what makes them tick. Really listen openly to what they’re saying without trying to push your beliefs on them. Let them tell their stories without your personal opinions getting in the way.

I try to do this more these days. I’m curious about people’s personal stories. There’s a difference between a “woe is me” vibe and someone just needing to talk it out. Sometimes, just having someone listen is enough to make you feel better.

 

Power Corrupted Leaders -- An opinion

I don’t see any politicians really doing anything good for the people. They make more laws and set up new organizations and committees, but the problems don’t get solved. The issues get more complicated. The more laws, the less freedom… and yet, crime continues to escalate. (My mind always cries, “Who are the ones really benefiting from all this?)

They take more and more from the taxpayers, fattening their own pockets, and supporting foreigners and those unwilling to work. (Yes, there are many who need help, but there are also now so many unwilling to get a real job and think it’s their right to sit back and let others take care of them. They’ve learned how to work the system.)

Big money rules – whether through corporations like Big Pharma or even drug lords and mafia, along with many of the super-rich... who lobby and fund politicians’ campaigns. They do NOTHING for the everyday, hardworking American citizens. (At least, that’s how I see things these days.)

And I feel they care more about foreigners and foreign countries than they care about their own people. Why the government sends BILLIONS of dollars to foreign countries while U.S. citizens are homeless and go hungry is mind boggling. The Dems are also all about protecting and freeing criminals.

I just don’t get it. Why aren’t people seeing this? Because they’re too caught up believing the lies and the false promises? The liberals promote a few do-gooder things people want to hear but spend most their time spewing their hatred on anyone who disagrees.

And they’re so busy screaming against the Republicans, you have no idea what the Democrats are really up to except for fearmongering, finger pointing, and accusing others of the very things they’re doing and promoting. I just don’t get it.

There are so many similarities to the beginnings of Fascism, Nazism, and Communism. Those leaders (Franco, Mussolini, Hitler, and Stalin – among others) promised they were taking care of their people, but in reality, they were just pushing their own personal agendas seeking total control and fattening theirs and their cronies’ coffers. And it’s now happening in this country!

Look at history and it’s true it repeats. Different era, different technology, but the end results are for the same reasons – total control over the masses while getting rich. And this has been true since mankind began.

Funny how there will be a coup in a country and in time, the new leadership becomes the same as the one they overthrew. It’s almost like something happens in people’s brains when they become leaders. All the good they originally promoted (for those who had good intentions), gets thrown out the window. What is that saying? “Power corrupts.”

The Greed of the Wealthy and Leaders

“I have never understood why it is ‘greed’ to want to keep the money you earned but not greed to take somebody else's money.” – Thomas Sowell

I saw this saying today and it’s really resonating with me. I’ve wondered this type of thing for a very long time – even more so these last couple of years. I’ve never been able to put it in such a simple statement, though. How true this is!

I don’t understand it, either, but this has been going on forever. This is how all governments and leaders have always worked… and corporations. It doesn’t matter what country or place or century; mankind has always done this type of thing to others. And leaders (any leader of any civilization or organization or even towns) have always done this. Oh, they all have excuses, but the bottom line is that they are thieves at the expense of people who are supposed to look up to them.

It’s one thing to tax people for the good of the town or country, but these leaders don’t stop with what their town or area needs. They fatten their own personal coffers way more than is necessary – at the expense of hard workers – which is robbery. Many countries enslave others, so they don’t have to pay them to work which fattens their own coffers even easier.

This country finally abolished slavery, but government leaders and officials have found other ways to make themselves richer at the expense of their citizens. They now become wealthy from the corporate lobbyists who fund their campaigns, and which makes the politicians beholden to the corporations. It’s no longer about what’s good for everyday citizens or specific regions. Its just about these factions getting wealthier and wealthier. They could care less about the public and consumers except for getting even more money out of them.

Huge corporations buy out smaller businesses crippling local economy. It seems to be a constant take, take, take, and what comes back to the public is a trickle of goods and services. Good customer service are just a few fancy words that mean nothing nowadays. It’s another placebo term to make people believe they are getting their money’s worth.

And they use disasters and huge problems to create even more issues, shortages, and health issues to further cripple citizens into having to go along with whatever the leaders are trying to force. Stalin, Mussolini, Franco, and Hitler (among others) did it. They used world problems to further their takeover endeavors and used propaganda to lie and convince their populations they were only thinking of helping them. Ha! (This is putting it simply, but it’s all there in the history.)

And that’s another topic: (what I call) placebo terms. There are many placebo terms bandied about these days. Words are used, which, by normal definitions are good things, but the meanings have now been twisted to mean the exact opposite. For instance, every time I hear the word “transparency,” I look to see what they’re trying to hide.

The word diversity is a signal that some belief is being pushed down others’ throats. Those who are spewing about the injustice of prejudice and hatred are the ones promoting it. The more they’re forcing the issue, the more negativity it creates.

I’m not saying there’s not prejudice and injustice. There always has been and probably always will be. People will be people with their own beliefs. Not everyone is liked. Not everyone ever will be. There will always be disagreements. Freedom of speech is important, but so is kindness and courtesy.

I don’t know what the right answers are to “fix” our problems, but what is happening now in the world and within the education system is not the answer. Forcing people into thinking one way or following specific dictates – becomes a dictatorship and becomes another form of enslavement – an enslavement of speech making people into sheep who can only go, “Baaa, baaa,” and “Whatever you say, master.”

I am beginning to believe the slaves nowadays in this country are the everyday taxpayers. And that’s not to put down all the others around the world who are truly slaves to their current governments.

(And again, I don’t know the answers, and I certainly wouldn’t want to be on any committee to solve the problems. All I know is that what’s going on now is NOT working and it’s not fair to the general public. The only ones truly benefiting are the politicians, corporations, and super rich.)

This was another instant where someone else’s words inspired me to write my own take on a topic.