More Questions Than Answers
By Harris Sherline
June 3, 2009
Here are some questions I have been asking myself. Some philosophical, some practical, some merely rhetorical, perhaps even a bit naïve:
- Are Americans so immature and self-centered that we really can't see what is happening to us? Have we become too soft and self-centered to survive? Do we really care, or are we more concerned about personal advantage and profit than solving problems?
- Is there really a connection between today's decisions and future events? Seems obvious, doesn't it, but all too often people behave as if their words and actions don't have any consequences.
- Why are we debating tactics as if the judgment of every citizen should be taken into account about how we conduct a war? Who should be in charge and make the major decisions about conducting the wars we fight: politicians, professional military or the general public?
- Can America ever win another war? Not a battle but a war?
- Why is loyalty to one's political party considered a greater virtue than loyalty to the country?
- Where are the "statesmen" of our times, men like Churchill, Fulbright, Eisenhower and George Marshall?
- Where are the political leaders with true courage, such as the Founding Fathers, Abe Lincoln, Andrew Jackson, Teddy Roosevelt, Harry Truman, Ronald Reagan?
- Why do we continue to tolerate young people who deface their bodies in such a way as to make themselves not just unattractive but repulsive? Who on earth would want to hire them, except for the most menial jobs, such as washing cars, busing dishes, etc.?
- How is it that our government is so infused with fraud, corruption and misrepresentation and no one really seems to care?
- How did we manage to allow our government employees to reach the position where the taxpaying public is actually working for them and their generous pensions rather than the other way around? What, if anything, can be done about it?
- Why do we tolerate a political system that has made "public service" a lifetime career, with pay and perks that far exceed those of the average American?
- Doesn't anyone do anything any more just because it's "right," not because they get something out of it?
- What makes people who have little or no qualifications think they suddenly become instant experts on just about any subject immediately after they have been elected to public office? Fighting wars and managing the economy are good examples.
- Why do so many people seem to think that out-screeching or preventing others from speaking makes for a convincing argument? Screeching types obviously don't understand or care that tirades don't help their cause or convince anyone of anything, except of course those who may already agree with them.
- We are constantly being told that the public wants comity and consensus from our political types, so why do we so rarely see either?
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