Disenfranchised

I haven't posted for a while. I could say it is because I'm so busy, which I am. But, that's not the real reason. The real reason is that I don't want to talk about what I'm feeling because overall it is quite negative. I'd rather come up with some breezy anecdote from my life, one that puts a slight grin on your face, but I'm all out right now. I look at what is going on in our country now and I'm downright miffed. I feel as if I've gone through the looking glass and what was once up is now down and visa versa. I thought I lived in a country that prized self reliance and independence, but I stand corrected. I live in a country where everyone is more concerned about what government can do for them..."where's mine" seems to be the collective cry. I believe that we're about to elect a man who will further usher in a new socialist agenda. This is not a hyperbolic statement; instead it is a simple statement of the state of affairs. What bothers me most is that most people I see are just sitting back and taking it. There seems to be a general passive acceptance, as if this is the next natural step in the evolution of our country. There are those that are downright ecstatic about the change. It makes me sad and it is about all that I am able to think about.

Dan and I have worked very hard over the past three decades. We've paid off our house. We haven't lived beyond our means. We steadily put away money for our retirement because we know that we will never see our social security. We've taken responsibility for our finances. We never expected anyone other than ourselves to secure our financial security. But in the space of a few weeks, we've lost nearly half of our retirement. At the same time, our legislature voted for a bail out bill that commits $750 BILLION DOLLARS of tax money that is placed in the hands of the very government officials who CAUSED this mess. So, not only has the value of our retirement and our home decreased at staggering levels, but we also get to pay the bill for others who acted irresponsibly. Am I wrong to feel as if we are now living in an alternate reality? So I'm just trying to sort all this out. To come to terms that the America that I grew up believing in is now fundamentally changing. It appears that there is nothing that I can do to change it. Both political parties, which are the only current bandwagons to jump on, are so corrupt and misguided. I'd love to vote for a third party candidate, but then there is the whole "throwing your vote away" argument where there is a precident...remember Ross Perot? I feel so disenfranchised. I feel so angry. I feel so frustrated. I feel so powerless. That's why I haven't posted. Who wants to hear the rantings of a middle aged woman?