Over three hundred years ago people of good will were drawn together by shared injustices. They may not have agreed on much except a vision of people living in community and governing themselves. They had spent their lives controlled by a ruling class and believed there was a better way.
They established a government of representatives, elected by them, to govern on their behalf. The new country grew and flourished, guided by people of wisdom and ethics. Not every elected representative had the future of this great country as their motivation, some were in it only for personal gain, but the majority kept the founding ideals alive and the force driving the country’s growth.
Soon after the country’s founding the representatives formed affinity groups, or political parties, to help them govern more effectively. These groups grew as they represented the current needs of the community and they faded away when they no longer spoke for those they represented. Over time it became clear the most effective organization was made of two strong parties. With only one party the risk of misadventure was great and with many small parties the organization could not respond to current needs effectively.
The two current parties have existed for many years guiding the country through challenge and success. Over their histories they have at various times represented different groups and fought passionately for what they thought was best for the country. Most recently it could generally be said one party represents the worker’s needs and the other represents the needs of the business community. The country’s health depends on each having a strong voice. Their ability to compromise has led to solutions to the nation’s problems without resorting to extremes on either side.
Today one party attempts to address real problems facing the nation while the other has given up even trying to find solutions. The problems are real and need real world solutions not extreme ideas. Businesses big and small need representation to help grow their customer base, control their costs, and maintain an even field where excellence is rewarded and sub par performance goes by the wayside. No one group can develop ideas to meet everyone’s needs, it requires many people of good will molding different ideas into a solution.
We need to stop the name calling and bullying behavior, take our problems seriously, and commit to finding solutions. Today the country needs republicans of character to step up, reject the distractions, and except their responsibility to acknowledge the problems and work for solutions. Only then will the nation continue the path toward fulfilling the promise first envisioned over three hundred years ago.