“The conservative Tea Party movement has won several victories over mainstream U.S. Republicans in primary contests ahead of
November’s midterm elections,” reads a Sept. 15 BBC story.
I can’t help laughing when I read news like this.
“Republicans are hoping to benefit from anger over the U.S. economy to win both houses of the U.S. Congress in November,” the
story continues.
President Obama was elected because people blamed Republicans for economic problems. Now people are voting for more
Republicans and “Tea Partiers” because they blame Democrats for the continued economic problems.
At this rate we’ll just keep tossing the blame back and forth and bouncing between both parties. And, of course, the economy won’t
get any better. Neither party can fix it anyway.
But we have to blame somebody, right? OK, I blame you. And me. It’s everybody’s fault. America is democratic, isn’t it? Let’s take
some responsibility.
We screwed up the economy by letting it get to this point. The economy is driven by consumers (us). We are steered here and there
by corporations who use us to manipulate the economy to give them the most profit. If you can control consumers, you can control
the economy.
The rich kept manipulating the economy to get richer but eventually went too far by trying to take more money than people had to
give, causing an economic meltdown.
The government’s attempts to alleviate this collapse so far have been to throw money we don’t have at the problem, with bailouts
and stimulus packages. Occasionally a big company will get a slap on the wrist too.
What we actually need to do is revamp the entire system — something the government won’t just do on its own — and stop allowing
ourselves to be manipulated by those who would try to control the economy.
I’m no expert on economics, but it’s fairly easy to see how it got out of hand and how pitiful our attempts to fix it have been.
We got ourselves into this mess by allowing this economic circus to continue for so long. We’re the ones who are going to have to
get ourselves out of it. And we certainly won’t do so by continuing to vote for Democrats and Republicans for national offices. No matter
which of the two you vote for, you’re likely to get the same thing: an imperialist or capitalist who will accomplish just barely enough to
keep his or constituents happy (a simple feat), but who will largely preserve the status-quo, and often in an attempt to get re-elected.
Of course, not all elected officials fit this bill, but a majority of them do and so has practically every president.
So if you think voting will somehow have any real impact on the economy, think again. It’s going to take a lot more than that. All you
need to do is open your eyes a bit and think more critically. Pay attention to those in power and to what’s happening around you. Be
inquisitive. Inform yourself. Question the beliefs and statements of others. Question yourself; question me! Never accept anything at
face-value; be skeptical. You have to get confused about an issue if you want to fully understand it.
In short, think about how things are, and then think about how things should be. And, please, think long and hard.
I’m not some political guru or anything, I’m just a pissed off teenager with strong beliefs who’s tired of fake liberals, stupid
conservatives and ignorant Americans.
If I’ve offended you, then I’m glad. I’m so tired of everybody trying not to step on the toes of others. People’s views need to be
offended every now and then, it gets them uppity, and that’s the only way to get shit done.
So, please, get offended, but do something about it as well. Let’s argue a bit. If you can’t effectively argue (“I’m right; you’re wrong,”
doesn’t count) for what you believe, maybe you had better do some re-evaluating.
Let’s stop playing the political blame game and take some responsibility and figure things out ourselves, even if it means stepping on
some toes.

Managing editor
Braden Smith can be reached at [email protected].