Red vs. Blue OR Red, White AND Blue?

Are You a Red American, A Blue American or a Red White and Blue American?

We have endured so much animosity in Washington and in this country ever since Newt Gingrich told the Republican Party that it's members should not fraternize with those in the"Other" Party outside of work. I remember hearing Ted Kennedy, who was famous for compromise, say in an interview that before newt cam into power, a lot of work got done during after hour socializing.

 In 1994 Gingrich's political action committee, GOPAC, sent out "GOPAC memo", called "Language: A Key Mechanism of Control", was written and distributed to members of the Republican Party. It contained a list of "contrasting words" and "optimistic positive governing words" that Gingrich recommended for use in describing Democrats and Republicans, respectively. For example, words to use against opponents include decay, failure (fail), collapse(ing), deeper, crisis, urgent(cy), destructive, destroy, sick, pathetic, lie, liberal, they/them, unionized bureaucracy, "compassion" is not enough, betray, consequences, limit(s), shallow, traitors, sensationalists;"

How will those in the Washington ever work on a solution to America's problems if they maintain and encourage the US vs. THEM, all or nothing mentality. It's not us and them it's "We the People".

That has not been our history as Americans. We have always known how to come together as a team to get things done.

Old fashioned barn raisings or helping a neighbor or a stranger in need.  Meal were given to hungry people  or a job for a day to pay for food when they showed up on your doorstep in need.
 Soup kitchens were set up during the Great Depression in the 20's to help the hungry out of work people.

Working as a team to get things done during World War II not only with our Allies but here at home. Women went to work in arms factories to take the place of men who went off to war,  people lived with rationing of food and other items so supplies could be sent to the troops. More recently we saw it through the way we came together as a nation after 9/11, the outpouring of people trying to assist Hurricane Katrina victims and the disaster in Haiti. You name the problem be it tornadoes or feeding our local homeless people, we Americans figure out how to get it done. As you all well know it doesn't have to be something here in the US. It just has to be the right thing to do. 

We never vote and say well our team says "We can only help by sending bottles of water by jets" and the other says "No, overland freight is the best and only way" and suddenly, STALEMATE, no one gets the water they need. No, a team figures out what needs to be done and we do it; or we send money to the right organized group to get the job done as efficiently and humanely as possible. 

So what has happend to us that suddenly there are now distinct teams with only 2 lines of belief, with 2 sets of black and white answers to all issues facing the American people? This is not a Board game with exact rules to follow, it's the fate of the American people.  

I know it's not just me, I hear it from friends and strangers alike and see it on Social Media sites. I even heard David Letterman say it to President Obama the other night,  "I am sick and tired of the divisiveness that we perceive...but  you can just smell that something is not working any more..." Letterman Interview 9/18/12

I think we need to get back to the belief in democratic process and not the media process. It shouldn't be all about sound bytes, or what you read in a chain email that you send along without proof that it is real because you want to believe it's real.

Yes, we also allow Freedom of speech and I believe that we do and should have differing opinions on politics and how to better this country and what is the best way to wash clothes or drive to the grocery store.

 However, if a person can't fundamentally get along with those they work with side by side or in this bigger picture those that are making decisions about our great nation, then every red flag should be going up! We should all be writing and calling all of our Representatives in Washington and telling them to get their act together. 

Not after the Election. Now. Do you want me to believe you in the future even if you are not up for relection now, then change your stripes. I don't care if you are a Democrat , a Republican or an Independent. Make yourself heard because no matter who gets elected as President, we can't take 4 more years or even 4 more months or weeks of stalemate in Washington.

There is too much work that needs to get done, so more Red White and Blue Americans can get a job, get a good education, get their Social Security check,  Medicare Benefits, Health Care Coverage and be proud to be American who can still get things done!

We deserve it.

Times have changed...so, quit complaining - Cranston Herald

Times have changed...so, quit complaining - Cranston Herald

If you like, use the link above to post your comments to the original article so Charlie Lawrence can see them!

To the Editor:

I am white. I am male. I am also 68 and a Vietnam Era veteran. And I am angry.
And I know many people my age who are also angry. They see gays and lesbians demanding the right to get married. They see a black man in the White House with a strange sounding name, changing our health care system and suggesting that we as a nation might have something to do with the sorry state of affairs in the world.

To my fellow seniors who are upset and alarmed at this, I have a message: Stop feeling sorry for yourself! Enough of your whining! The world is changing, and it's about time you got off your mental easy chair and did the same! Your stubborn resistance to change is maddening!

Upset about gay lifestyle? I am married more than 40 years ... to a woman ... and I do not in any way feel threatened by gays and lesbians who wish to be wed. Here's some advice – one senior to another – try minding your own business. 

When I see you no longer eating pork or working on Sunday, then I'll take your Bible-based opposition to gay marriage seriously. 

And while you are at it, stop complaining about this so-called “socialist” president as you sit in your easy chairs collecting both Medicare and Social Security. And don't swallow the hogwash about a Republican saving Medicare and a Democrat “robbing” it. Please, don't make seniors look senile by swallowing that lie. ( I'll deal with that lie in my next letter.)
You constantly lament how things have gotten worse. Yes, they have.

Ours was a noble generation that fought for Medicare, for equal rights for women and blacks, clean air and water and decent wages for all. Now too many of us fight for tax breaks for the wealthiest few and more power and money for corporations. How noble is that?

We admired and respected broadcasters like Walter Cronkite and Paul Harvey. Men of integrity. Now we are taken in by any right-wing blowhard with a microphone, the biggest being a four-times married, self-admitted drug abuser. Another so insane, even Fox News dropped him.

And, yes, there is a black man in the White House. It's a sign of the changing face of America. I fully understand for many this is an uncomfortable sign; your old world is gone. For most, what you feel is not bigotry; it's fear. Deep down fear. 

Please! It's 2012. Stop fearing change! Embrace it! Welcome it as we did so many years ago because change is here and will continue with or without our help.

Charlie Lawrence
Johnston