I am aware that I am considered a liberal on most measures. In an attempt to be as open as possible to "all sides", I do read some people's opinions that I do not necessarily agree with, especially if what they write makes some sense. I cite my daily reading of Walter Mead's blog who has to be one of those people with conservative views that are most thought provoking. His intelligence is noted by the arguments he cites, not merely his opposition to the more liberal views in question.
I cite two of his repeated views. While he thoughtfully traces our more democratic system of supporting its citizens with public pensions, he now views this support as unsustainable and an indication of the need to revise the entire government employment structure, whether federal, state, or city. It is hard to disagree with him. Some cities have gone bankrupt, e.g., Stockton, CA and some states of tottering on collapse, e.g., Illinois. It is clear that the employment benefits need to be changed to address fiscal realities.
Another issue he regularly addresses is green energy. He is forever pointing out the problems confronting those pushing for further initiatives to advance clean air. His problems are two-fold: the technology is still not sufficient and in addition, at the moment, not economical. The increase in natural gas and oil has made the economic costs of green energy seem overwhelming. I cannot disagree with his assessment, but I still think that the harm to our environment is still great and requires us to go down a road that may not be economically to our advantage at the moment.
My attempts to be somewhat balanced in my views was jarred while watching Bill Moyers' latest program. Norman Ornstein and Thomas Mann were interviewed a year after their book on their assessment of our congressional stalemate was published. Their book was quickly noticed and, as quickly, discarded. Their thesis was that the malaise of the government is due to the Republican intransigence based on ideology. It is noted that these two senior political scientists have a history of esteem, one in the more conservative community, and the other, in the more liberal community. But, they are in total agreement with the principal cause of the problem. They are aware that there are some problems attributed to Democrats. However, they feel that the media's attempt to be "balanced" distorts the reality of the problems generated by the Republicans.
Their assessment that the "balanced" views are a distortion of reality gets to the point that I may need to reassess my attempt to be "balanced". As liberal as I may be, it is possible that I could be "right".
I feel that I am willing to accept some modification in entitlement programs, recognizing that there are fiscal issues maintaining the status quo. I cannot deny the economics of green energy are presently problematic, but I do think that introducing a carbon tax would start us down a road that would be good for the environment and promote growth in revenue that could be used for improvements in our infrastructure. I doubt that ACA will work out well. It is too complicated and does not address the triggers that inflate healthcare costs. Nothing will work until we provide universal health care, e.g., Medicare, to everyone. It would clearly reduce the costs of health care, as Steve Brills' TIME article portrays. I support transparency in the government, e.g., we should know about the operation of drones, and recognize that the government cannot solve all problems. However, there is a need to understand that the economic inequities in our nation will require government intervention to offset the policies generated by the special interests promoting the more wealthy segment of the population.
The bottom line is that I have to be aware of the viewpoints of others, but I need be too "balanced" if I want to remain honest with reality. And the reality of our government's current nightmare is caused principally by the Republicans who have given up any attempt to provide solutions to national problems, rather than ensure that programs advocated by Democrats get buried by exploiting the "rules of Congress".
No comments:
Post a Comment