In an effort to remove some negativity from my daily existence I am shying away from political commentary. Just kiddin', I could no more do that than support Bidens' presidency. Politics, the general welfare of the nation as a whole, has become an important issue to me. It is true when I was much younger I wasn't really paying attention to what was going on. Oh, I voted for the candidate of my choice in each election, performed that civic duty. it is the obligation of every citizen. But then again I don't remember such core issues being voted upon either, that was because I wasn't paying attention. There were things that slipped by me, things like Roe V Wade. Of course there wasn't much protesting going on either, a few marches and such. They were being conducted by the hippies and pot heads was my impression of all that. Turns out, politicians took them seriously and approved some of their ideas. Well, that was unexpected. But as the years have passed I have begun to take notice and grow concerned for the future. And I've come to understand it is a future I won't be living in! In what I can only think of as irony, I have come to be concerned for a future I will not be living in, as the wheels of government turn slowly indeed. Consider Roe V Wade. That was passed 48 years ago and now today the discussion has been reopened. And what is the discussion about? Is an unborn child, a child? And should we allow the murdering of that child? And amazingly the discussion is still open!
That got me thinking about age and politics. When I was growing up I was encouraged to keep abreast of current events. I seem to recall an English teacher that insisted upon that and I had to write weekly papers on just that. I would read the local newspaper as that held the most interest to me. At least I read about someone or something that I had a vague knowledge of. It was easy to form an opinion on that stuff as I lived below the bridge and most of that stuff concerned those above the bridge. Yeah, kinda like Republicans and Democrats. As I got older my world did expand until I found myself surrounded! That is when the interest in politics began.
When thinking about America and American politics we have to go to the beginning. We have to think about those founding fathers and the documents they composed. Just who where those guys anyway? Most of us are familiar with the names but do you know the ages? I was surprised to learn that the majority were less than forty years old. We do have to remember that forty was an elder person in colonial times. Even more surprising however is this list; James Madison (25) Alexander Hamilton (21) James Monroe (18) Thomas Jefferson (33) John Adams (40) Washington (44) and Franklin was the old guy at (70). Today in Congress the average age for our representatives is 57. The average age of a Senator is 61. Interesting also is that the average age of the Democratic leadership is 72 and the average age of Republican leadership is 48.
Now all of that being established, you can fact check it if you like, I think it is safe to say there is a larger disparity between the ages of our representatives and the general population today, than there was back in 1776. You have to wonder how it was possible for such younger people as Madison and Monroe to have played such an important role in the founding of this country. This was long before there were Republicans' and Democrats. Well, the truth is they just went by different names back then, and were divided on many issues. The final document, the Declaration of Independence, was the result of compromise. The first congress lasted for two years! Yeah, we usually only hear about the congress meeting in Philadelphia but that isn't the whole story. No, it took a couple years to reach an agreement. The federalist papers published from 1786 to 1787 where written by Hamilton, Monroe and John Jay(43) in support of the constitution. Note the time between the revolution and the signing of the Constitution was a period of eleven years. Yes, governments move very slowly, even when in revolution!
It isn't lost on me that it was the younger folks that started the revolution that led to our independence. Yes, they were revolutionaries. It is only when we examine their thoughts that we see a difference between then and now. When those founders were in their teen and early twenties they did have the thought processes and understanding of much older statesmen. You have to wonder why? It is my thinking it was because those men were taught, from an early age, to be critical thinkers. Morality, honor, and diplomacy were a part of their lives. Infractions in those codes of conduct were severely rebuked. It must also be remembered that those younger folks had a lot less to lose financially than the elder statesmen. Ten years after starting that Revolution that was mentioned when they wrote "we pledge to each other, our lives, our fortunes and our sacred honor. " There circumstances had changed over that eleven year span. Still, they were well aware of the consequences of this action.
What is the lesson to be learned from that? I see it this way. Those "young" people were acting upon reason. They could see the inequities imposed by the King. The King was a hinderance to what? Making a good living, advancing in society, and the acquisition of power. That was summed up the phrase, "the pursuit of happiness." Yes, they were emotional people as well, all fired up as younger folks tend to be, impatient. They needed to convince the population that being independent was the way to go. They needed to convince the population that dependence upon government was the cause of their discontent. It seems to me that message has been lost over time. Today we have those promoting dependence as the avenue to freedom. In that is the fundamental difference in the political parties today. The Democratic party favors that dependence by the population. That is the reason for many of their proposed policies. It has been their modus operandi since at least 1865. The establishment of dependence as a means of control. The Republicans advocate for less government, less taxes, just like the colonists wanted, and accountability.
Does age play a role in all of this? I wonder about that. I have doubts. In my way of thinking it has more to do with moral and just thinking than age itself. Those founding fathers in their funny old fashioned ways did live their livres by a code. Whether that code was founded in Christian principles could be debated. It is my belief that many were based in just that. After all these Europeans were attempting to establish a new world order, weren't they? No monarchy. These were educated men having read and studied history and all the lessons learned from that study. At the same time they understood the absolute need for rules. They has to be a standard agreed upon by the population in order to be successful. Wise enough to separate church from state they didn't attempt to delineate morality. There only fault, if it is a fault, was believing in the honor of men. They also were well aware you can not legislate morality!
Now the rest of what I have to say is subjective. I will say this; look at the younger members of Congress today. Are they of the caliber of a Monroe or a Hamilton? Has their education prepared them to lead the nation? We have the "squad" and what does that represent? Listen closely to the proposals of these members of Congress carefully. Listen closely too, to the proposals of the elder statesmen, what are they proposing as a path forward. In my view politicians today are often legislating by emotion, rather than reason. This is happening on both sides of the aisle, I can't lay the blame at the feet of the Democrats. Common sense and reason is being set aside in favor of what? Is it really to benefit our grandchildren and beyond? Is that what is best? The dismantling of the Republic. That is the path I see today. Emotion, rather than reason.
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