Getting This Party Started

When you though the side show in politics had stopped or slowed down on all levels... well it was only taking a brief recess... but it is back and boy are there some new sets of actors or clowns doing the same routine... talking loud, doing nothing and even using some bigger props.  And if you believed for once that people would finally get the right memo, email, read the tea leaves, see the right shrink (therapist)... then we are all in to seeing some interesting dance moves in 2015.   The only things missing are the afros, shag carpet, strobe lights and some space to form the “soul train” line.    

Each year there seems to be a lot of things on the American agenda, but it is hard to see any real progress and there are glowing reports to back that up.   The list is endless, but the major players include poverty, housing, economics, jobs, employment, workforce readiness, crime, law enforcement, health care, education, domestic violence and social services.  We have become a nation of services (public/private) that provide some kind of assistance to some kind of problem.   Just name a problem and there is some agency out there that can deal with that particular issue.  We have hundreds if not thousands of little known programs available that no one really knows about.  Of course that means those resources will never be used.  That sounds messed up...   

Amazingly, there are hundreds of reports completed each year that highlight the issues and what if any progress has been made.  Everybody wants to study the problem and things go on for years and years without a solution.   In the end, these reports are completed, placed on a bookshelf or used as doorstops along the way, mentioned during political speeches, job interviews, listed as a reference in future reports or when applying for another grant.  In the end, this is what we did, what we believed to be true, here are the results of our actions and how we can improve, if and when this opportunity comes again.      

No one told us that these and other things were included in the price tag when pursuing the American Dream.  The hidden costs of obtaining the dream are what have derailed the majority of Americans.  It seemed so simple, to own a home in a good neighborhood, work a livable wage job and your children obtaining a good education.   And because of the side shows that we will see played out in 2015, the dream will continue to be deferred.  So, I would recommend that we pray for the best, hope for some progress and close one of our eyes to a lot of bad dancing.    What do you think?

Dr. Andrew Calhoun, can be contacted at andrewiiicalhoun@gmail.com, Twitter #AC53, and Facebook.   You can hear Dr. Calhoun each Sunday at Grace Fellowship Church, 3879 N. Port Washington Rd. Milwaukee 414-265-5546.