Local Politicians or Whipping Boys

I’ve come to the conclusion that local politicians are not just running to serve the public in an official capacity but also in an unofficial capacity as a whipping boy or girl as the case may be. The papers are full of “reviews” or “suggestions” left anonymously by people who would never volunteer for anything, but have plenty of time to scrutinize and make terrible remarks just to hear themselves talk. Why anyone would want to subject themselves and their families to this scrutiny and downright nasty comments is beyond me?
Some public offices are held by unscrupulous individuals and they get what they deserve, but the politicians I’m talking about are the ones who actually believe in the American dream. Their reality is that anyone from anywhere can come here legally and fulfill a dream that may not be afforded anywhere else in the world. These people have a vision that they can make a difference in their communities by giving their time, opinions and service for free or relatively free, they want to make it a better place to live, work and play. The majority of these elected individuals work their own jobs and then put in many hours a week serving the public in some cases for less than a $25 a week, only to find out that their hard work and efforts have been unappreciated and ridiculed, and that even their families have been dragged through the mud for no good cause. I’ve heard about people losing their jobs after many years of being a loyal employee when they took up a cause and decided to run for an elected position and won.
I hope there will never be a day when people get enough and say, “I give up!” Let the people that only have something to gain have it.
We seem to stay on the sidelines until something affects us personally. Election Day is a wonderful time to express our views .We as Americans enjoy the freedom of speech, but with that freedom comes certain responsibilities. One of those responsibilities is to vote. We lose a lot of really good people by not publicly giving them our support. I also understand that no one person can make everyone happy. No matter which way they vote there will always be someone that feels the decision wasn’t in their own best interest. The question that always has to be answered is: what’s best for the majority over time? Never should a decision be made for the personal gain of the elected officials or a select few. Jeremy Thorpe said, “greater love hath no man than this, that he lay down his friends for his political life.”
Presently the national elections are being influenced by our economy and there’s enough blame to go around. I can’t clearly see any one party that is more to blame than the other and a lot has to be said about our own wasteful spending in the past years. You can’t keep spending what you don’t have.
I hope each of you will take the time to vote.
Just Saying !
oer