Tonight it’s time to get sort of philosophical. I’ve spent a couple days between posts thinking about a number of things and how best to express them.
To start out, the reason I got into the political world was that I saw it as a way to make a difference. Back then I was younger and more idealistic but unfortunately had not a clue how to accomplish what I wanted to do. As I got older, I learned much more about things which are my strengths and those that are my weaknesses, and I tried as much as possible to manage my life to bypass those areas that aren’t my main strengths. One thing I found out rather quickly is that I’m not the prototypical politician by any means. I don’t have the gift of gab and the part about raising money and sucking up to people for votes just doesn’t appeal to me very well either, at least in a large-scale sense. I just deal better with small groups.
On the other hand, I do seem to have an ability to put words to paper (or onto a computer screen) that can become a good argument for the position I’m advocating. And political movements have room for people like myself, so I’ve been graced with attracting notice from various people and getting opportunities that not just anyone can take advantage of. Years ago I helped with the newsletter for our Young Republican club and would write the occasional letter to the editor of our local rag. But this political phase began with my being accepted to write on an occasional basis for the Patriot Post, continued with my original Blogger site, and evolved into monoblogue. And this site continues to grow – this week will be my first 1,000 visitor week according to my Site Meter. Part of that is being in the Maryland Bloggers Alliance and some of that comes from being featured on BlogNetNews Maryland. However, I think there’s more to this modest but blossoming success and I’m led to believe that it’s because I put together a website that doesn’t go into the personal attack mode like some others do. Further, when I write about a problem, more often than not I have some thoughts or suggestions for a solution to this issue.
And this in turn brings me to what I’m going to attempt to begin today.
When I ran for my current post on the Wicomico County Republican Central Committee, the main goal of mine was to make Wicomico County a county where Republicans outnumber Democrats. Part of achieving this in my mind was to get the younger people in Wicomico County to become Republicans because of my belief that it’s in their best interest to follow conservative Republican principles, and that American society will be more successful in the long run if they do. I have no idea of the demographics of my readership but I’m betting the average age is less than 40.
Last year I devoted a lot of time and post space to the Maryland election cycle, which gave me an opportunity to see issues from many different sides. In District 37B there was a candidate named Jim Adkins who, while I didn’t agree with his stance on a number of issues, couched them on the premise of looking at their impact 20 or 30 years into the future. Obviously, parents want what’s best for their kids and I believe that may have been a part of his thinking, but there’s a LOT of politicians on both sides who look only 2-4 years ahead and think solely about maintaining their position of power.
I noted earlier that I was not born to be a politician because my skill set isn’t the same as, say, a Jim Mathias. In some ways this is a bummer because I think I have a lot of good ideas.
But, on the other hand, this is liberating as well. Because I’m not a legislator or seeking an executive-type post, I don’t have to deliver a lot of hollow promises. In fact, my political philosophy may turn some types of people off because I’m the sort who doesn’t believe that government in and of itself should enrich people nor do I think it’s a proper vehicle for wealth transfer. Unfortunately, it’s been noted that “a democracy…can only exist until a majority of voters discover that they can vote themselves largesse out of the public treasury.” Since I’m opposed to that concept, there’s no way in hell I could be truthful about my beliefs and ever reach a high enough office to put these plans into action.
In my small way, by beginning these writings I’d like to help begin a movement much as the Federalists did at our nation’s birth. More recently, at least parts of this goal have been accomplished by leaders like Ronald Reagan and Newt Gingrich. Unfortunately, President Reagan is no longer with us to lead but Gingrich continues to write and speak with a similar eye on the future of America. Like me, he’s not currently shackled by having to pander to an electorate which frees him to state his case for a movement. Whether or not you agreed with the concepts, the Gingrich vision embodied in the 1994 “Contract With America” changed politics in our country.
And therein lies the reason I term this as a fifty year plan. In my eyes, it’s going to take five decades and a dedicated generation to turn back the tide of government that’s not for the people, but for only some of the people and taken from others – particularly taken from those who achieve financial success. Indeed, it’s possible I may not live to see that day come, and there’s always the threats from without that could doom our society as we have come to know it.
For my generation (I’m on the cusp between Boomer and Gen X’er), it may be too late to make a significant change in America. Our hope for change lies in the Millennial Generation, those born after 1980. It’s a group that came of age with Bill Clinton and 9/11, and it’s the one who’s bearing the brunt of the sacrifices in Afghanistan and Iraq. It’s for them that I begin this series of writings, which will be on an occasional basis and focus on one particular area that I’d like to see the next generation improve our nation in.
Something tells me that they’ll be more than willing to meet the challenges we face.
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