1/20/2017
We live in an interesting time. For the first time in my three score and ten years, I see a world torn between despair and hope, wrenched between hatred and acceptance, divided by wealth and poverty. The United States of America is no longer united. We are now a country openly divided. At this time, no states are threatening to secede from our nation, primarily because the people of the states are divided as well, but who knows what may happen in the future! Some individuals threaten to move to other countries; but the truth is, the world is equally divided and there is nowhere to go that will give us the love and peace we desire. We need to accept and live with what we have chosen but remain vigilant that our rights remain intact.
The Electoral College elected the President of the United States. (The Electoral College consists of 538 electors. A majority of 270 electoral votes was required to elect the President. Each state’s entitled allotment of electors equals the number of members in its Congressional delegation: one for each member in the House of Representatives plus two for their Senators.) This group of individuals is selected to represent the People and is used as a check and balance issue to insure that the larger states would not control the election. In this election, Trump lost the popular vote of Americans by almost three million votes.
We are torn. Dissention and rioting filled the streets and the airwaves during the inauguration. Women the country over and the world over have marched in protest of the new President and the changes they believe he might bring. Even before the votes were cast, the People were divided. Immigration, abortion, race, fear of those not in your approved circle, climate change, gender inequality and a severe financial divide were but a few problems that faced this country.
A few days later, I fear the divide is growing. An article I recently read stated that scientists, engineers, and computer experts are racing to salvage information kept on government servers. It was stated that the information has been transferred to Europe and Canada where it can be compared to information that the new administration puts on the servers. It appears that those communities distrust the President’s administration and believe that valuable data will be lost and new data will support the new administration’s agenda. Subsequent reports stipulate that a lot of the data has changed. This could be because it is customary for a new administration to present their agenda, but others believe that it is a more subversive motive.
Mr. Trump, before he became President, said he was going to “drain the swamp” in Washington. Now President Trump has appointed more billionaires to government positions than ever before. The women he wants appointed as Secretary of Education is a billionaire with no experience in education. She owns businesses that profit by collecting debts from students in default of college loans. She gives freely to causes that attempt to put education in the hands of church run schools and for profit agencies. During her confirmation hearings, she answered questions submitted to her that showed she had little understanding of legal and moral issues facing education today. I was truly distressed when I discovered that her family had donated freely to many of the Senators that will vote on her appointment. I was equally shocked to learn that her brother founded Blackwater.
She isn’t the only appointee that worries me. Putting a former Goldman Sacks executive in as Secretary of the Treasury is an interesting choice. Banks bankrupted this country a few years back and now will be determining government policy pertaining to out financial institutions. I could go on with other appointees, but I think you see where I’m going…
But, let’s look at the other side of the coin. America, and it seems many other countries, are fed up with the status quo. Our governments are being challenged. People are concerned that the governments are not listening. The People are making drastic choices and voting in politicians and policies because any change is considered better than maintaining a failed system. It is time for our political parties to look to and listen to the People.
America, the United States, is one of the most revered countries in the world and needs to determine the future direction it will be taking. Will we be: “We, the People”, or will we be: “we the divided”? The doing model I spoke about before is a determining factor here. Putting billionaires in charge of our countries could provide a path to fiscal responsibility but it could also be a path to social collapse and devastation. Do we need more? Do we need a new world order?
The grand experiment is on. Will we succeed or move back to the dark ages? Only time will tell. I hope to remain vigilant and take note, and react if and when things look dark and give praise when things go better.
We ask that you keep those who are less fortunate in your prayers and send those suffering from disease your wishes for better health.
by Nancy P.S. Hopp
OMP Admin Note: Nancy PS Hopp is a writer and OMP Network member – one of a group of networkers who will be blogging on a regular basis on various causes and issues.
Nancy is a writer I encountered on the writing site WriteOn. I was impressed with her thoughtful and mature flash fiction stories, often based on her own experiences and background and asked her to join the One Million Project network, as a valued member.
One of those stories or a brand new one will appear in the guest writer section of the upcoming fourth volume of the anthology BITE SIZE STORIES series.
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