It's a Sad Day

     I am six hours ahead of the East Coast since I moved to Germany last May. So I get the news before most people wake up (or in the case of those in the restaurant biz, before you pass out). I bet there's a lot of drinking going on right now. The Republicans took over Congress yesterday. While I do not hate Republicans and have many conservative friends, the Republicans that reside or will reside on Capitol Hill are the ones that worry me. I don't like leaders who put money, power and their own needs before those they represent.

     You see, politicians are not like us. They want people to like them and vote for them, so they promise some outlandish shit in order to get elected. Congressmen only have to serve six years before they receive life long pensions and retirement funds. In a country reeling from a huge national debt, environmental issues like Climate Change and rising sea levels, racial tensions the likes we haven't seen on this scale since the 1960's and the cost of living escalating faster than people can add a third job, political office should be an honor, not a position of status. Democrats and Republicans both are failing the American People by putting themselves before the country.

     People like Ted Cruz believe that they are doing the country a service by throwing a temper tantrum on the Senate floor in order to shut down a government run by hard working Americans. How many people were not paid during that shut down? Thousands were not, but Ted Cruz was. People like Mitch McConnell want to close the EPA, ignore the dire warnings from the Climate experts of the world and revert us back to environmental standards reminiscent of the meat packing industry of the early 20th Century. People like John Boehner want to approve the Keystone Pipeline, dismantle the Affordable Care Act and continue to take money from the Oil Industry because with money comes power.

     I worry about the state of the country. I worry that with decreased environmental protections, relaxed environmental standards and with affordable healthcare off the table, the country is going to fall behind the rest of the world. Increased pollution means a higher frequency of sick people, which means more money needed for medical bills. How are Americans expected to pay for the increased cost of living...across the board!... when oil rebounds and the minimum wage drops? How do we look to the rest of the world, with our military might but refusal to join in discussion about global threats that cannot be addressed with military might?

     The world faces its greatest threat: Inaction. The seas are rising, the world is getting warmer. It doesn't matter what Rick Scott or Lamar Smith have to say about Climate Change. They are supposed to listen to the experts and act in the interests of their constituents. Not listen to their campaign contributors and pocket the spoils. We face a global threat in Climate Change and how we, the human race, are damaging our planet. This election showed how out of touch people are and how they fail to see the seriousness of our situation. Which means things are going to get much much worse before they get better. By then, it may very well be too late.