Immaturity in Washington

"Fleas can be taught nearly anything that a Congressman can." - Mark Twain, What Is Man?

"...the smallest minds and the selfishest souls and the cowardliest hearts that God makes."
- Mark Twain, Letter fragment, 1891

Over the past weeks I have watched Washington with great interest.  I have always been a fan of politics and history.  Since the age of nine, I have been a political animal.  I love debate and the exchange of ideas.  I love reading about politicians who move beyond politics to statesmanship.  My heroes are those men and women who were willing to risk everything for the country.  President Kennedy's book Profiles in Courage has many examples.

With this background the circus we see in Washington in the summer of 2011 is sickening.  I have struggled to make sense of the circus acts we see each day.  And make no mistake it is a three ring circus.  As soon as the President, a senator, or a congress person enters the ring, they start their act.  They are playing to the crowd and looking for applause.  Everybody tries to outdo the last act.  It has been a shameless, embarrassing display of all that's wrong in 2011.

Mark Twain once said, "Get your facts straight; then you may distort them as much as you please."  This summer no one bothers with facts.  No one has his or her facts straight.  I watch video of the proceedings in complete amazement as I hear lie after lie, distortion after distortion, misrepresentation after misrepresentation.  And our so-called leaders do it without embarrassment.

I am sick of the whole group.  I am absolutely disgusted with both Democrats and Republicans.  Just this week I finally realized what bothered me so much about the whole mess--our political leaders are immature brats.  They act just like my high school students used to act in the cafeteria before a food fight.  When they are fourteen and ready to throw a pad of butter at another student, one can understand.  When they are forty and ready to risk the economy of the world to score political points, we cannot and must not forgive.

I have seen mature fourteen-year-old students.  I have seen fifty-year-old children.  Our nation's capital is filled with immature men and women posing as leaders.  Many of them are privileged brats who have had all the advantages, attended the best schools, were swept up into a brilliant career, and ended their rise to fame in Washington.  They clean up great and look good on camera, but they are whining, irresponsible, selfish children.  It is hard to find an adult among them.

From the President to the Senate to the House we are in trouble.  In the summer of 2011 the inmates are truly running the asylum.