SNAP OUT OF IT!

Remember the scene in MOONSTRUCK when Loretta (a very young Cher) slapped Ronny (a very young Nicholas Cage) and told him to "snap out of it!"

In our country, we find ourselves immersed in dirty politics and scandals that go unresolved.  We need to snap out of it.  But how can we do that?

This week's newest scandal is Bridgegate.  After the story broke about Governor Christie, the media was all over the scandal.  And Christie rightly SHOULD acccount for the alleged abuse of power.  But one wonders at the selective prosecution of these scandals.

#1.  In the 24-hour period after the Christie story broke, the "big three" networks reported Bridgegate SEVENTEEN times more than they had covered SIX MONTHS of the IRS scandal.  link

Lane closings on the Brooklyn Bridge could have impact on many people (including a lady stuck in an emergency vehicle), but it does pale in comparison to a story of the IRS abuse.  Why?  IRS abuse impacts everyone who pays taxes...and compromises our election process.  Placing the IRS scandal in LaLa Land was handy because when people heard no more from the scandal, they naturally assumed there was nothing to it.  Now months later, the administration snaps to and appoints an Obama donor to investigate the Obama scandal.  Seem unbiased/impartial to you?

#2.  The Justice Department has pounced on a Texas case of the violent "knockout" game.  Shouldn't  that be a welcome development?  Yes, but for months there were numerous knockout cases (black-on-white) and the government did nothing to stop it.

Now in Katy, TX there comes a case of a white-on-black knockout and Eric Holder is immediately all over it.  As this link points out, the previous cases had established hate toward "whitey" and Jews.  It would have been nice to have heard from Mr. Holder earlier.

#3.  Last week (SIXTEEN months after Benghazi), the State Department admitted that it WAS Al Qaeda and it WAS carefully planned.  link  That news story had already been reported SIX DAYS after the attack by Fox, who even included the name of the Al Qaeda terrorist in charge.

Still, this story went into limbo for a long time.  Even last week, the New York Times posted an exhaustive story that concluded the attack WASN'T Al Qaeda, without even mentioning the Pentagon's assessment.  The New York Times' reputation as the premier news source is down the tubes.

Just today, 450 pages of sworn testimony on Benghazi was unclassified.  link  The military knew all along it was a terrorist attack and advised the President in a meeting (Panetta, Ham, Dempsey) the afternoon of 9/11.

Benghazi hurt our country badly.  We lost people.  We lost our military commitment to never leave anyone behind.  We lost our trust in what our leaders told us.  The world heard our message loud and clear that "political well-being" trumped all else.

If Bridgegate was nothing compared to the IRS scandal...and the Justice Department was nothing compared to Benghazi scandal...then what takes the cake as the mother of all scandals?

Obamacare.  Politifact.com made "keep your plan" the 2013 Lie of the Year.  Who looks you in the eye and repeatedly gives a bait-and-switch?

Now our country's economic malaise begs for reduced spending and for JOBS.  None of the administration's job ideas have worked and Obamacare is the big sucker on the jobs market.  Even the President's Jobs Council was disbanded this month. link   Created in 2011, the Jobs Council only met 4 times.  Their suggestions (which were what Romney suggested during the presidential debates) were dismissed.  How can jobs be a priority with this record?

It is hard to maintain outrage over the daily occurences that pop up in this adminstration like Whack-A-Mole.  Outrage takes an emotional toll on the carrier and people also have daily lives to administer.

But if we don't SNAP TO IT and find governmental representatives who will honestly represent us (leaders who will tell the truth, take responsibility, and fire mismanaging employees)...we will all end up either on unemployment or living on Shirley Jackson Lee's new word for welfare ("a transitional living fund").  C'mon America!  Pay attention.  We can be better stewards of our vote.