the majority

  Picking the candidate. I like to believe that prior performance and/or reputation is the measuring stick for that. The reality is quite different, however. Today race, creed, national origin and religious affiliation are the primary factors being considered. I'm aware that it has always been so. Those are the qualifiers each of us look for in a candidate. It makes little difference what the selection is for. Everything from a pickup baseball game to selection for president of the United States is determined in that manner. The only thing different is in the past we used to at least pretend we didn't. That was written into our Constitution as the ideal situation. No religious test shall ever be applied to a candidate for office. That has caused quite the stir several times and is at the center of another conflict at the capital. I'm old enough to remember when Kennedey was elected. He was a Catholic! Would he listen to the Pope or to the people? It was quite upsetting to some. 

  I was thinking about that as I listened to the political pundits on television. Who has the best chance? Well, we have to begin with whether that person has ever uttered a single positive thought about Trump. You can't show any support for him and be considered, you're out. Then we have to check on their race and gender. Now all of that has become "fluid" over the past few years or so. Candidates are changing their cultural identities faster than I change my socks! What is Elizabeth Warren this week? How does Kamala present herself today? There are fourteen members of Congress that identify as LGBTQ+. Some are men and some are women. Some men are dressing as women. Not sure why there aren't any women dressing as men though, guess that is for the next election cycle. At least eight hundred and forty-three LGBTQ+ people serve in elected offices across the United States, an increase of 21% since June of 2019. A bit overrepresented as that group only comprises about 7.2% of the population. Haven't heard any protesting about that though. I have heard there are too many white folks in office though. 

  I've said it before, and I'll keep saying it. I listen as all these candidates vie for my support. They tell me what they are going to do. I'm waiting to hear one ask me what I want them to do. As of yet, it's been crickets in that department. All I'm hearing is why I should vote for them. They hate Trump is the battle cry of every Democratic candidate and I might, could have, maybe will, sometimes agree with or disavow any association with Trump comes from the Republicans. All of them claim to represent some demographic, mostly whatever that demographic they feel will get them elected. Yes, it's always been like that. It's called the majority. The majority should win, that's the way the entire system was designed to work. It should work that way even when the minority do not like the results. 

  So, we are left with that. The candidates are attempting to appeal to the majority. What is the majority opinion in this country? Back when the country was founded the majority wanted one thing, freedom. Freedom from government interference in their lives. Tired of taxes, tolls, and being restricted by government those people rebelled. Now those in rebellion knew that government was a necessity when forming a nation. James Madison put it this way: “If Men were angels, no government would be necessary. "If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal controls on government would be necessary. In framing a government which is to be administered by men over men, the great difficulty lies in this: you must first enable the government to control the governed; and the next place, oblige it to control itself.” The government today has failed at controlling itself. That's why a Convention of the States has become necessary. Time for the majority opinion to rule the land once again!

 That is what I want my candidate to do. I care little about his/her race, creed, color or religious beliefs. I simply want them to agree with me. Do that and I vote for you. The difficulty for the candidates lies in convincing me of their sincerity. Are you asking or telling? Generally speaking, I don't like to be told how to think or feel about anything. I'll decide that for myself. It's easier to just go along with the crowd, adopt the popular opinion, but that isn't what I'm about. I'd say the majority of Americans are like that. They say it is the quiet ones you should be concerned about. That's true. The majority has been quiet about a lot of things in the last few years, but voices are starting to speak up. A big believer in majority rule, I believe the majority will rule!  

“The great virtue of a free market system is that it does not care what color people are; it does not care what their religion is; it only cares whether they can produce something you want to buy. It is the most effective system we have discovered to enable people who hate one another to deal with one another and help one another.” - (Milton Friedman) That's what the big rebellion was really all about. The free-market system is free from government.