I have given the whole idea of reelection to the Congress a lot of thought. I am not running. In some ways I am quitting which is something I never do. But the overwhelming tasks ahead require someone who is looking out for the good of the country and not themselves. Not raising the banner of an outspoken and sometimes selfish minority that can wreak havoc in the name of democracy.

I guess this whole thing of the deficit and debt ceiling has put me over the top but it goes way beyond that. We seem to fill our days with posturing and glad handing. We take too many breaks and are not about the business of the people. We all line up in unison behind this speaker or that and the sight has become as foolish as it is symbolic. Smile for the camera.

We are not a body of statespeople but of lemmings. We refuse to speak our own thoughts for fear of retribution. Go ahead and try to buck the bosses. There will be hell to pay.

The liberals know we must cut back government. The redundancies and duplications are sinful. We must make welfare programs efficient and not cash cows for the local politicos.

The word entitlement should be banned from the description. It was designed and meant for the needy. We have got to means test Social Security and Medicare. Redistribution of wealth is a dangerous proposition. There are inequities to be dealt with but we are not a socialist country.

The conservatives know the solution resides in higher taxes and cutbacks working in tandem. The shovel and the sword. They took basic math. They understand, but those subsidies and loopholes feel so good to their well heeled donors.

It is laughable that people and companies making so much and pay so little in taxes. Just look at estates and yachts and multimillion dollar condos in New York and tell me increased taxes (or more pointedly elimination of tax cuts) will really result in the loss of jobs.

There are bums like Blagojevich and Madoff that should be in jail. There are bums like Rangel, Dimon and Blankfein, who might fit in right beside them. There should be a membership  committee for the likes of union bosses and Weiner and Edwards. They have all lost their way. They have forgotten where they came from.

I have been proud to see the successes of our space program. These thirty years have seen some heady times. But we must now take care of business on earth and leave the heavens to another generation. It will still be there.

I may go back and teach school. I may not join a union. I would like to see my dues going to buy equipment for study rather than newspaper ads and lobbyists. I really believe we must rethink everything about education. It will take visionaries not fighters. We are not good at that.

What scares me most is jobs. Our economy has been 75% based on consumerism. Another large percent on construction. I think people are “thinged” out, They don’t need stuff anymore. Their homes are large enough. We want jobs to return but I really don’t know where they will come from. None of my colleagues on either side of the aisle can give me a specific answer.

The most frustrating aspect of my time here has been the growth of regulation. I hate government intervention. Everybody screams it is those rules that are holding us back.

But coal mine and oil and gas companies still try to cut every corner they can. JP Morgan just paid $228 million for bid rigging. B Of A just agreed to pay billions. Ditto Morgan Stanley and Goldman. All without admitting or denying guilt. Northrop and Boeing admit overcharging. Oh yeah. These guys want to regulate themselves.

No new taxes on one hand and unlimited spending on the other sells like crack on a ghetto street corner. Let’s look the other way on transgressions. Let’s put off tough decisions until tomorrow. Or the next election. Let’s just set up the other guy to take the fall. I love it when a plan comes together.

Maybe I will just write a blog. Maybe I will just try to shake up my readers to the point where they get involved. To the point where they realize it is just as much their responsibility as ours. I hope I can be hard hitting. I hope I have a chance to light the fire in their bellies. God, we need it.

You see I am leaving here because I have lost faith. I can’t be obstinate. I can’t be unreasonable. I have to take whatever God given talent I have and make tough decisions. The only cause I can be a warrior for is my country as a whole. We are incredibly diverse. That can be an attribute or a fatal flaw. But we are one.

I have lost faith but not hope. There’s still time, brothers and sisters. There is still time. But not a lot.

As always

Rep. Ted The Great.( 3^rd District, Planet Mars)

Factoids:

55,000 government buildings are underutilized. In May government construction fell .8% to $276 billion annually.

The US government currently has over 2,000 subsidies to industries and individuals.

The US Navy has designed and built a catamaran coastal vessel that was originally pegged at $220 million. It is now $650 million per copy. Total project cost, $38 billion vs. $8 billion

The USAF spends $644 on a gear that sells for $12.51.

The DOD spent $850 million on a joint military pay system. They contracted with Northrup Grumman. It has been recently scrapped as unworkable. I wonder if ADP bid?