Does America seem to be more divided today than any other point in time since the Civil War? It would seem so, and it is by design.
Over the years politicians have lost sight of the fact that they are civil servants and not rulers. Clearly there is an issue when those who hold office want for nothing and that makes them feel superior to their fellow citizens. In turn, those in office view the citizenry not as constituents to serve, but as a means to an end. We are here to cast our votes for them to ensure they stay in power by saying one thing and then doing whatever is best for them, not what is best for us.
They engage in Orwellian doublespeak. Politicians campaign on promises to “unite” and “heal” the country, but instead keep us divided on purpose by pushing narratives that America is inherently racist, sexist, and any other “–ist” word they can find or make up. It is imperative for these politicians to keep us divided and at odds with each other because a united populace is antithetical to their goals. To keep us divided along the lines of race, sex, vaccinated, unvaccinated, and anything else to keep us arguing and debating amongst ourselves while the politicians continue to enrich themselves and we are too busy to notice those making daily press briefings are wolves in sheep’s clothing.
The goal is to keep the citizens divided while they pander to their base and special interests, to keep us occupied debating and arguing amongst ourselves so we do not notice that they are gaining power and millions of dollars for themselves while doing nothing to solve the problems they created but use to stay in power.
An article from the Atlantic describes the net worth of various senators and congressional representatives. It is in the millions. So why is it that they love to lecture us on income inequality when they have more money than those they are supposed to represent? They want to keep us divided, keeping the haves and the have-nots at odds while they line their own pockets. The article states that the average congressional salary in 2012 was $174,000 while the average household income in the United States was $51,017. It seems that Congress is better at managing their money than it is at managing yours. Especially evidenced by the fact that the United States’ debt ceiling has been raised ninety-four times between 1944 and 1994, while only being decreased ten times in the same time span. It is possible that politicians only care about managing their money wisely, while wasting your hard-earned money to pork, special interests and in general keeping themselves in office. Church Leaders Misplace the Blame for Christian Persecution in the Middle East
Both parties are complicit. We as a nation need to stop buying into the lies that are being fed to us. We are told that we are a racist nation, yet Barack Obama was elected for two terms as president. That would seem to dispel any idea that America is systemically racist.
We have also been told that we are sexist, yet Hillary Clinton was nominated by a major party as its candidate for president in 2016. Would a sexist country allow a female to run for president? I would argue no, but the counterargument would be that America was sexist because Clinton lost the 2016 election. A true thinker would ask: did Hillary lose because we are sexist or was she a poor candidate plagued by years of scandals?
Too many friendships and families have been divided by politics lately, and this tribalism only benefits the politicians, not the people they are supposed to be serving. We need to end the tribalism and bring back civic discourse in which we as a nation can come to a consensus on the correct course of action for each issue. That will include compromise, a delicate art that seems lost as everything these days is viewed as a zero-sum game. Our country was not founded on the premise of one viewpoint dominating the other. It was intended that we compromise, and in the end we have the freedom to choose; not to be dominated by a ruling elite. Politicians have forgotten, they are our equals, citizens of the United States, not superior to us. It is time to end the tribalism of left versus right, male, female, black and white and to realize we are one tribe seeking the same goal. We are Americans, and all any of us wants is to live our lives without being subjugated by a ruling elite.
Politicians have become a de facto oligarchy. Term limits must be enacted and an end to lobbying must be enacted as well. A return to our founding principles will cure the division and end the corruption.