Calming Down

I'm finding that calming down after the recent budget fight, potential shut-down has been difficult for me.

Truth be told, while I obviously lean left, I'm really not an ideologue. I actually don't really trust ideologues. I tend to think hard and fast ideologies are simplistic attempts to solve complex problems. I tend to believe that the truth is found in a variety of ideas and that pragmatism is more important than holding fas to some ideology. But, obviously, I find myself in the minority.

Several things made me angry.

The Democrats failed to pass a budget when they had control of Congress, both houses, and they also passed the health care legislation that had some good things in it. It is mislabled as 'Obamacare' to make it appear like it was the brain child of the President. Sadly, it was the brainchild of committees in Congress with a bunch of modifications made to make it more palatable. The Democrats passed it and ran away from it like scared children. If you pass something good, stand up for it and promote it. They failed and lost the House. Deservedly so.

Some of the Republicans used the current budget time to attempt to make cheap political points. Michele Bachmann and Mike Pence gave speeches practically demanding a shut down and the more radical people in the party made life difficult for John Boehner. I think, of everyone, Boehner has the most difficult job. He's the 'cat herder' in Congress. While I disagree with Boehner on most things, I've come to greatly respect him. I do think he has a lot of integrity.

I'm not sure about the President on this one. He pretty much stayed on the sidelines and tried to be 'Presidential.' From what I've heard, however, he was very much a player and was on the phone constantly.

But the biggest issue is this. It shouldn't have come to this. We elect people to behave like grown ups. Some did----or tried to, but everyone was let down by incompetence and untruths.

I hope I do eventually calm down.