By Kollengode S Venkataraman (Written in 2007)
We are in the early stages of the next presidential election season.
With the field wide open for both parties, we have nearly two dozen declared and undeclared candidates, evenly split between Democrats and Republicans. It is refreshing to see Republican candidates violating their 11th Commandment, “Thou shalt not criticize another Republican in public” — even daring to make tangential remarks about other Republican candidates’ less-than-perfect family life.
Obviously, the Iraq mess created by Bush-43 is the focus of the ’08 elections, with over 3400 US soldiers killed and nearly eight times that many seriously wounded so far. The psychiatric issues of the tens of thousands of soldiers who are not wounded are another story. The financial and social implications of this reckless war will be felt for the next several decades.
In campaigns, what politicians do not talk about often means a lot more than what they do talk about. So far, we have not heard any candidate painting a rosy picture of the future, a la Reagan. Is it possible that the candidates, for once, realize that the situation is quite serious? It seems so. Just consider these:
- In the wake of this war, US credibility and influence globally on matters of politics and economics have never been this low since WW-II.
- US trade deficits and federal budget deficits keep on piling.
- US citizens’ lack of discipline in personal savings is scandalous.
- Social security and Medicare are in jeopardy.
- Even blue-chip companies stopped offering pensions to new employees.
- The cost of college education ($20,000 in public universities and $45,000 in private universities) has driven a wedge not only between the rich and the poor, but also between middle class and the affluent.
- Over 45 miilion people ( over 15% of the population) are living without health insurance
- the net worth of the top 2% has increased significantly, while those at the bottom 25% are struggling, and the middle class is being squeezed out.
And while the US military is at war, the rest of the population makes no personal sacrifice for the war, not even financial (as a War Tax).
Anyone, two, even three of the above are manageable, if we are strong on other measures. But when all these indicators are bad, they tell us that difficult times are ahead. Is that why the presidential candidates are less than sanguine in their rhetoric? END