Small bites

My future president

Going into the Elections this year, I find that I keep coming back to a thought that just won't rest. The critique of this fine nation is summed up in the vasted bloat that exists between what is necessary and what is preferred. I keep coming back to the concept of "lean business".

One of the key principles in any good business is that it keeps itself "lean". Find the cheapest way to produce a product or service, pay your workers fairly and reward them with reasonable bonuses or perks, and return your excesses to the nature of building a better company. This is a very basic example but for this purpose it'll do.

I believe we need a "lean" government. Starting first and most importantly is the reduction of Congress' ability to give itself a pay increase. The second is the reduction of politicians who have spent their time in office ineffectively. If you can not prove your worth through the ledger of your daily work, by showing how you've managed to improve the wellbeing of those who've elected you to represent them, you should be dismissed.

Given the current structure of our system, this is not an easy task to undertake. There are alot of uneducated voters out there who lack complete information to make a well informed decision. Part of that is our current system's lack of accountability. We have Congressional oversight committees and hearings but ultimately my persception is that there is nothing to enforce the investigations that have been done.

I'll be the first one to tell you how ignorant I am in regards to how these things go. As a citizen of this country, I have an obligation to my government to question the leadership of those in office. I feel there is a disconnect between what the media portrays as my government's values and my own. My generation's inability to define what our demands are signifies this disconnect at a basic level. We know there's a problem. The difficulty is we can't articulate what it is. Because when our elected officals take the stage, they aren't talking about the real problems. They want to talk about abortion or gay rights. They want to talk about how the other guy is screwing it up. They want to sell you on the idea that the economy is "heading in the right direction". The last thing we need are more people arguing about private affairs of the individual. Have an abortion if you feel it's best for you. I don't want my government to be involved.

The problem, from my perspective, is that this government is bloated and bleating about the discomfort. The problem from my perspective is that there isn't a single, note worthy candidate out there for my vote. I don't want my next president to be encumbered by the chains of an ineffective system, not focused on the problems. I don't want my next president to be on one side or the other of an old and antiquated system.

This two party system wasn't the dream of our founding fathers. This isn't the United States of America that they invisioned. More gun legislation isn't the answer. More pep rallies for "republicans" or "democrats" aren't the answer. What a waste of resources given these technological advanced times. I hope my future president would know that.

We need a lean "for the people" government. No more rallies that cost cities thousands of dollars that could have gone into funding for education. Our country should have a better focus on education. No more legislature to go towards private affairs. Gay people should have the same recognition as hetrosexual people. The fact that we live in a day and age where that's even an issue is astounding.

When my future president stands in a room full of people asking hard questions, I want that person to look them in the face, tell them the news, for better or for worse, and give them a solution that makes sense. When my future president is asked in a televised interview what his or her thoughts are on gay marriage, I want them to be offended that their time was being wasted with meaningless personal questions. I want my future president to have the integrity to stand in a country full of corrupt, jaded, desensitized and disconnected people and say "We can fix this." The next thing I want my future president to do is prove it.