Blowing off a little steam

OK, the American political commentary is getting out of hand.  No, wait, its real F-ing far out of hand.  Its so insanely out of hand that I don't want to argue any more.  I want to cry, I want to hide under my covers like I did when I was 5.  I want to do what some people do and have a good long cry.  I want to get the girlfriends together, give each other manicures, watch Eat-Love-Pray and chow down on some Freakin Cookie Dough!!! WAIT...WTF DID I JUST SAY????  Oh well, F-it...THAT'S how frustrated I am, I'm having out of my mind experiences!

Lets get a few things about me straight upfront:

Age: 35

Education: Incomplete MBA, Undergrad Focus: Business and History

3 years Technical school prior to college (8 years in a classroom after high school)

Service:  Country: USMC Infantry Local: City Councilman, Foster Parent, Soccer Coach

Demographic:  Employed, 6 Figure salary, Homeowner, Whit-ish, Heterosexual, Divorced (Because she had to find herself)

Exposure to the world:  20 US States,  10 Countries, 4 Continents

Political Views:  Damn near a Libertarian on some things, Damn near a Humanist on others, but a registered Republican who has voted Democrat in the last 2 National Elections

Years unemployed since birth: 13 Years unemployed since coming of working age: 0

Years working 2 Jobs: 11 Days on Unemployment: 0

Weaknesses/Temptations:  Beer, Summer Dresses and the girls who know how to wear them, animals, New Orleans, Boudin, Tattoo's, BBQ's, motorcycles, good books, Rock and Roll, boats, The Blue's, beer, Jeans and the girls who know how to wear them, coy, snarky smiles and the girls who know how to wear them, girls not wearing anything who know how to wear it, beer...OK that's enough, sorry hopefully you now see that I'm a man with at least average intelligence, complete with dreams, hopes, ambitions and faults (notice the repetitive themes...) who for the most part has tried to do his civic duty for his entire life thus far.  

The American economy is in a shambles.  Our infrastructure isn't that far behind, and our current path is the very definition of "unsustainable".  OK, this I know.  I also know that the process didn't start during the term of the last president, it started a long time ago.  This isn't what I want to talk about.  Guys and Gals far smarter than me with entire lives dedicated to Economics and running models have beaten this dead horse until you could literally pour the poor bastard into a glue bottle.  I want to talk about the hypocrisy of the average American, of my friends and family.  Of any poor soul unfortunate enough to stumble upon this blog.  

Something has to change, we all know this.  But the cry from the rooftops for "secession" (Traitors) and the cry for the "end to welfare" are getting really stupid.   So I want to take a look at all the government bennies and government protections you and your family have taken advantage of over the years that you or your family have conveniently forgotten about.  Lets start with the boring stuff.

Student Loans:  If you've taken 1 penny of students loans, you've taken government money.  You didn't really think you deserved a federally guaranteed sum of money at 3%-8% interest and 30 years to pay it off did you?  You didn't really think that a BA in Psychology was going to get you anything anyway did you?  You didn't really think that "all nighters" over at the "I eta Pi" house was the best use of GOVERNMENT MONEY did you? You should have paid it out of your own pocket, joined the military or should have had to seek funding on the free market.  At 18, if you could have found any funds the interest rate would probably have been around 29%.  You're Welcome :)

"Scholarship" programs:   Scholarships, true scholarships are given by either schools or private industry (who probably take federal money) because of the outstanding academic performance of a student and the potential for that student to somehow advance their goal upon graduation.  Getting 2 years of college paid for (such as Missouri A+) by getting a 3.0 and doing 40 hours of tutoring with some hot chick is just not-quite-a-"scholarship".  So if you or your kid took one of these, guess what?  You're a TAKER!!!  You're Welcome :)

Tax Deductions:  You think Romney sheltered money?  Of course he did!  That's the system!  You do it too!  You write off mileage, home improvements,  children you chose to have, houses you chose to buy, clothes you need to go to work.  You hide every penny possible from the government and then blame us going broke on "the takers"!

Social services for needy families:  We all have a few of the less than stellar family members don't we?  We all have a few that made some poor choices or found themselves in unfortunate situations don't we?  Maybe it was us...How many of us moved them into our houses (I did once).  How many of us cashed out our savings to help them get on their feet?  (I have family who did).  Bottom line: Women's shelters, Children's shelters, Guardian Ad Litem's, sheltered workshops, programs for the developmentally delayed (hey I NEVER told you it was a good idea to have IVF at 40!).  If you or anyone that you don't want to see starve and die on the street has used these programs...You're a taker!!!  You're Welcome :)

Home Loans:  Did you have 25% cash down?  Did you serve in the Military and as such have VA eligibility?  NO?  Did you buy a house with less than 1% of the purchase price in the bank?  I bet you did...!  TAKER!!!!  You're Welcome :)

Morality:  OK this isn't financial, but its a subject near and dear to my heart that people have been screaming about, and some of you out there are the biggest morality hypocrites in the Universe and again as I said above, I do have my faults.  But, "Gay Marriage"?...you think it destroys the sanctity of marriage huh?  I think straight married people have managed to do that all by themselves.  Homosexuality is a sin, but Lesbian porn isn't? C'mon, don't lie...don't make me call you out on this one... Then we have coveting and lusting over your neighbors, co-workers, movie stars and sports hero's...that isn't just a little sinful in your eyes?  Seeing two men kiss in public revolts you, makes you say things like "faggot", makes some of you get up and leave, makes some of you complain and demand that it be stopped, but a man slapping his wife at an airport...where did your sense of morality go now tough guy?  Gay Marriage destroys the sanctity of marriage, but getting married 3, 4, 5 times that doesn't do any damage.  Having 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, affairs...sometimes 2 at a time.  That doesn't hurt it at all.  Abandoning your family to "follow your dreams" and oops finding a boyfriend 2 years older than your own kids...no damage to the sanctity of marriage there!  It's OK, I'm sure he's a great "conversationalist" :) That last one isn't actually about what some of you think it is...It's actually about a guy I met on vacation.  Poor bastard is so depressed that all he does is get drunk and cry, babbling on and on about the 25 year old dude on top of his 50 y/o soon to be ex-wife of 30 years.

You scream at the top of your lungs about Saudi Arabia and Sharia law, but some of you just want a Christian version of Sharia Law.  Sticks and all!  Some of you look in the mirror, see an ugly picture and assume that their is something wrong with the mirror, some of you just never look in mirrors I guess.  

Doing what I did, where I did it, with the connections I had...I know a lot of your secrets.  I know what Doctors beat and stalked their wives.  Cops and Firefighters and Lawyers too.  I know whose wife tried to commit suicide over the affair her husband had.  I know what business owners took plea bargains so they didn't have to register as sex offenders after didling their "promiscuous" niece.  I know which women had affairs and with who and whose wives caught them.  I know why the principal at the "school I won't mention" decided to "change careers"  We've ALL had a hand in destroying the sanctity of marriage and weakening the American family unless we've doing everything we can to hold ours together.  There is no need to blame this on a group, unless we decide to blame it on "US".  I also know who stole money (you know who you are too! ;).  I know who lied on resumes, forged their credentials, exaggerated their experience.  Don't worry, I'm not telling-yet.  All I ask is that during this insanely negative time in American history you take a look inside, see some of your own faults and work on those.  If we all did that a little more, there would be a lot less wrong with the country.