Congressman Gone
Posted: Sunday, January 24, 2010
by Jack H. Schick
I'm not sure what to do with my Congressman. He's confused me a lot over his last couple of terms. For a while he was like one of those gophers in that game at the carnival where you get points for bopping him on the head with a mallet when he pops up out of a hole. There didn't seem to be any consistancy. I agreed with some of his votes, but I got mad about others. But, I guess that's the way a representative government works. Maybe I saw inconsistency because he wasn't always doing what I wanted him to do. I've got a limited perspective on the world. I mostly worry about "me". I figured he knew what he was doing and had the best interests of "our" district in mind.
During the last election cycle my Congressman became more consistent. Since I was unhappy half the time I started to pay more attention to current events and politics. At my age you start to realize that it actually means something, sometimes. They print the congressional votes in the newspaper. I noticed that he began sticking strictly to the party line. Both major parties try to focus in election years. They establish platforms that they think will get them elected and rein in the mavericks. Now his view was pretty much, "What they say goes for me", and "Oh yeah, I hate Bush, too". He was consistent, at least. I didn't need a mallet to pin him down.
In the next few months, I started reading about him in the paper a lot. He was bragging how much money he was getting for our district. He'd slipped in a bunch of ear marks on some spending bills. We couldn't afford to do most of the stuff locally. We had to get people from other areas of the country to pitch in tax dollars to help. I appreciated that. The economy around here could use a boost. I wondered how the people in Colorado felt about our new park, though. I wondered if they were doing the same thing and I was helping pay for their new park. I hoped ours cost more than theirs, or we at least broke even. I started to wonder if we even needed a new park.
Next, I read that alot of that free money was going to his friends and to people who gave him money for his campaign rather than being evenly "spread around". When one of the companies lost their taxpayers' money because of criminal activity, he gave back their donation and claimed ignorance. That seems to be consistent with politicians of both major parties, though. I guess he could just be ignorant. He seems like such a smart, slick guy, though. He smiles a lot, too, I started to notice.
After the last presidential election he really got on the band wagon, like so many other people did. He complained that Bush had spent way too much money, forgeting that, according to the Constitution, congress (where his guys were in charge), is the only one who can spend money. He became convinced that the only way to recover from spending way too much money was to spend a lot more money, a lot more. He became convinced that the best way to save me from the rising seas and from roasting to death was to make electricity and oil so expensive I'd have to freeze. He decided that the best way to keep some of the car companies from going broke was to help buy cars for people who could afford a new car payment. I couldn't, so I still drive my clunker (for which it's harder to get spare parts because they crushed all the used ones). He voted for a 12% spending increase this year, but at least he got us a bunch of new ear marks and stimulus money.
I found that I wasn't happy even close to half the time anymore, so I wrote him about it. I told him to stop wasting my money, to stop trying to increase my energy costs and to not raise my taxes. I told him that he should spread the free money around to people who didn't vote for him too. He was nice enough to write back. It was a personalized email. I liked that. He told me that he had to follow his beliefs. He appreciated my concerns, but as far as he could see, he'd made the correct decisions for our district and for our nation. Okay, go with what you believe. I had to give him credit for that. I don't have to believe the same thing, and I don't have to vote for him.
In this morning's paper I saw his smiling face on two separate articles, including a guest editorial column. I figured I'd better read them. After all, he sent me a personalized email. I was disappointed, though. He's pulling the gopher game thing again. He thinks we have to stop spending so much money. He wants to freeze discretionary spending. He's even proposing cutting $20 billion from the budget (that's a nickle out of every $100). He says his new position "is consistent in what I've been fighting for and trying to concern myself with since I took office." I was shocked. I had no idea. He reminded me that we're in this mess because of "the party of Sarah Palin" (Wasn't she in Alaska the whole time he was slipping in ear marks and pork, and voting for stimulus money for his friends?). He's down there in Washington trying to "straighten out the mess" that he didn't have anything to do with making. He thinks it's going to take a couple more terms. He's going to keep "fighting for us".
Granted, I have a limited perspective. I live just here, and I might have the only gopher head in the bunch. What's your Congressman up to? I'm not sure what to do with this guy. I'm half tempted to take a mallet to the voting booth next November and bop him on the head.
{Author's note: He bopped on the head in the election. We threw the bum out}
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Top-level comments on this article: (8 total)Jack, good article and you've exposed a lot of my feelings also. However, I am much more fortunate than you. Both of my Senators and mi district's Representative, seldom cast a vote that I do not approve of. So, I'm happy with them.Thanks for reading and commenting
Pelosi and Reid are the ones I would REALLY like to whack with a mallet!Good article.Thanks for reading and commenting, again
Loved the droll sense of humor and definitely take your mallet - be sure to vote - if you don't vote you can't complain, right? MarijoThanks for reading and commenting
Thanks for sharing your views on congress and Washington. It is disappointing Washington has become corrupt.thanks for reading and commenting
GGGGGGGGGGGGgggggggggggggggggrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr....I had this magnificent post on how to deal with this...and the computer burped...SO any way...The only thing I can tell you is to begin writing...1st letters to the editor...takes a while to get those posted...begin a blog...talk to people in your area...gain adherents...expand yoru blog, etc...you can make your representatives listen to you if you get enough people who agree with you to band together and then...way cool..the american way...you can begin to expand...lots of things...but really get people who agree with you to start writing "letters to the editor", then actually write to your representatives.don't just use email (each type of "mail" is weighted") in person visits to congressional offices weigh the most, snail mail next (1 office visit = 10 snail mail = 100 phone calls = 1000 emails...etc) work with your neighbors!Thanks for the advice. I dont know anything about blogs.That's why, most of the time, I write first on paper then on Word and save to a thumb drive after every paragraph. I usually do the 3rd draft on the Submit Screen. sometimes I just do it on the submit screen, but not often.good for you! like an idiot...I depend upon my computer...and when it burps, I'm screwed...I lose lots of "brilliant" comments that way (I'm not all biased). You write very well. Now all you have to do is...send this stuff to yoru congrressman/delegate/representatiive/senators.
Jack,Thanks for the laugh and remember, there's no such thing as free money. Well, unless the government just prints it.thanks for reading
I really enjoyed your article, Jack. Your writing style reminds me of Andy Rooney-- that's meant to be a compliment. Thanks for the chuckles.Thanks for reading and commenting.
Hey Jack, great article. We should all bring our mallets next election.Thanks for reading and commenting
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