Stepping back and taking a deep breath

And just contemplate, listen, and think about what is really important. One might gain more insight and wisdom this way. And one might be a leader to the American future by reducing the level of rhetoric published and reverberated throughout our media and blogs. Some of this rhetoric comes across as vile (often with bad language and behavior), some as enlightened speaking to their choir, and most just emotional venting and embarrassing someone else who thinks differently. It is a target rich environment.

On a more practical level, getting riled up by all the noisy stories does little good for our Nation. And preaching to the choir does little good beyond venting about whatever story riles one up. And practically speaking, those who talk the talk about bi-partisanship as a code word for agreeing with their point of view are going to the dust bin of history. It will just take a little time.

Now don’t stop reading and listening. After all, that is the food for contemplation and thinking about things. And pundits (paid pundit is a redundant term) still have to write and publish to make a living, and the media still have their ever too busy schedules to meet in order to get paid. But the rest of us have the advantage of stepping back and contemplating and thinking, maybe even just resting.

This idea applies to a minority of voting citizens. Well above half, maybe as many as 4 out of 5, are just too busy working and running families to even have thought about the 2008 elections and all the issues about our culture that gets us going. They don’t spend as much time on getting riled up in the interim. They are just too busy right now. Good, bad, or indifferent, that is just way it seems things are.

For our Country to survive we have to work together, like it or not. While the present day buzz-word is “bi-partisanship”, there are other buzz-words that might be better like “busy as bees” or “gung ho” (working together), as in a gung ho Congress, or a State government busy as bees, or the old Atlanta being a city too busy to hate.

Now no one believes in some fairy tale Rodney King “can we all just get along” world. And there is much good work going on today that is worthy of respect and emulation.

It does seem like this working together will have to come from the voters and their votes. The politicians (with exceptions of course) have had their chance, and only made things worse for our Country. And in the end, organizing votes may count more than organizing ideas. So with the luxury of 12 months to go until the 2008 elections, now is a good time to step back and take a deep breath and think about what is vitally important to our Country.