While our candidate in chief continues to abuse his stewardship as our Commander in Chief, his “committee” comprised of members of both parties is working hard to avoid the holocaust of meeting a November commitment to arrive at a fiscal compromise. If this is not reached, immediate, perhaps dangerous cuts will be made to the defense budget. Of course we have the added drama of both parties being largely ideologically bound to outmoded principles of governance and this makes the task more difficult.
Yesterday, two renown ex-senators forcibly, and actually quite civily, for outstanding Americans whose thoughtful and patriotic work was thrown in the trash pile by Obama as well as the power elite in both the House and Senate, testified at an open session of the committee. Months earlier I presented my views on their work and also informed the city government of its relevancy to the nation and, by simple extrapolation, to the governance of New Rochelle, At that time I invited any interested party to obtain a copy of the Committee findings and provided website information. Given the emphasis place by both Bowles and Simpson at the hearing regarding the gravity of our situation, the need for a unified and truly grand approach that addressed taxes, entitlement programs, deficits, spending cuts, revenue sources and more, it is not surprising that our egomaniacal president and ideologically driven congress, would largely stick to script and ignore the findings. As the saying goes, “chickens come home to roost,” and I predict that a number of the ideas proferred by these splendid Americans, will take root if not unrecognizably altered by the lesser men and women who seem to hold sway in our federal government. Parenthetically, Obama chose to ignore an almost equally fine economic report by Paul Volcker, choosing to follow the Wall Street crowd that he so maligns now, but from whom he has already collected millions of dollars for his re-election campaign.
This is, as I intimated, endemic in our political system and structure at all levels. I think the clearest way to express this is that our office holders and candidates have become victims of the very systems they have created and fed by the irrelevancy of short-term polls, cable news, anger unmanaged blogs, re-election fever, quest for donations and unrelented appearance of lobbyists and lawyers, politicians have become theatrical, non-responsive, and actually quite predictably dangerous. They seek the “grand design” over responding to what Maslow labeled the basic needs that envelop all our lives — food, shelter, security.
It lives in New Rochelle as well. I recall James O’Toole saying recently upon hearing all candidate presentations, something like “they all sound the same, politics as usual.” He probably is right on the face of it. We will continue to have a fractionalized north versus south city, false choices between the “grand design” of a Davids Island or Echo Bay versus the pressing urgency of building a business district, protecting assets and citizens especially downtown, coming to terms with the fact that no matter how they got here; by vote or by flying carpet, the strategic plan of the City must accept responsibility for the school district. And, ignoring the reality of the City Code is an affront to the intelligence of every citizen who takes the time to become familiar with it and wonders why it has not been changed if the City fathers choose to run the city in role relationships and responsibilities not at all consistent with the language of the key Article Provisions X and XIII.
So our political base both GOP and Democrat choose to support and nurture conflict over collaboration by both errors in omission and commission. They choose to ignore media such as this one saying privately, perhaps in some cases publically, that this is a “witch hunt.” Maybe so, maybe Herman Cain is being victimized by similar excesses in political liberties at this time. But, who the hell says we are powerless. We do, by refusing to create a proper list of what is priority to our community, to ask the right questions, to stop believing that “the new boss (will not) be the same as the old boss.” He or she certainly will as both parties and their proponents collude, even if unwittingly, in the avoidance of critical thinking, in the notion that they are “special and voter oriented.” They are not. There is more honesty of purpose in the tea party and in the wall street protestors who speak out of ignorance. Ignorance is a relevant excuse, knowing and not acting, and promoting separation over collaboration, is both self-defeating, community busting, and not consistent with our American values and way of life.
I sound pompous and I apologize because I am part of the problem. Every one of you who reads this, especially those who post frequently, are just as much at fault. You condemn, criticize, pretend you are “gadflys.’ You are not! I am not! If you want to know what a gadfly is, read Socrates. I wish the present Greek state which is as self-interested, over consuming as we are, would go back and read about the blessings brought to the world by their spiritual and philosophic fathers. The consumption, the inflated retirement funding, so much more is stifling, almost as deadly as the air in Athens which is as polluting as anywhere in the world.
Community has its roots in places like Greece. The ancients were involved. They were less indictment oriented than they were inquisitive and supportive. Our fathers and mothers understood much more than we do. We rescued the world from oppressive and heinous tyranny. Read the current issue of the Westchester Guardian where the estimable Robert Scott, a fine writer and finer historian, tells us about Armistice Day and the Unknown Soldier. This is real and this was America. We sacrificed, saved, helped each other, formed a family and community. Now we have become a litiguous society, social engineers, racial arsonists, narcissistic, and intolerant people full of “I deserve it” and so, lets have it all.
Well, we cannot especially in times of 9.1% unemployment. We will never change a damn thing in New Rochelle by accusing Noam Bramson of every misadventure in the book. We need to look into the mirror; Noam is us, only brighter than most of us. I still contend he has the seed of selfless sustaining power in him and given support of the right measure and kind plus, and most important, a willingness for self-introspection, he will be the “ceremonial mayor” we all want and, if we want to amend the intent and spirit of the City Code, the strong mayor, we all should have.
It begins and ends with each of us as citizens. The next step is building a sustainable community. If a child is running wild in the streets and breaking the law, hold the parents feet to the fire, if no parental guidance, the churches have the moral and spiritual responsibility to step up as does the community. Lay off the teachers, let them teach and only teach. Lay off the police, let them uphold the law and hold their feet to the fire if they abuse their privileges.
I am voting for Noam Bramson…. I am ecletically supporting Jared Rice, Louis Trangucci, and Ilyse Spertus. I don’t know enough about the remaining ditricts and candidates.
Next year, if all goes well for me, I will talk less and do more. The above people will hear from me and I will offer my support such as it is as I do for my County and State representatives Jim Maisano and George Latimer. These are fine men and through Jim, I have learned enough about Sheila Marcotte to urge her election and I have always admired Amy Paulin.
Thats it. Chip away if you will, but do vote and do try to be a strong, but more positive voice. And Mayor, if you are getting information on this post, I also care for you as well as support you and urge you to both read TOTS despite any emotional antipathy you may have and look down this way for talent as yet unused and I begin with John D. a man who I have never met, but who has a spiritual side and is the intellectual equal of anyone currently serving in your administration.