Back in the Saddle

Ah, peace. One month with no politics, no writing, no worrying about money and fear-mongering trumping democracy once again. For the first time since Shep was a pup, a national election managed to hold leaders accountable for corruption and incompetence. And now we’ve all had a little break to catch our collective breath. Yes, these post-election weeks have been a blessed respite.

It wasn’t all good, of course. Tammy Duckworth, the dynamic, decorated Iraq vet from Illinois sure would have made a powerful presence in Congress, but she lost in a squeaker to a young man who, despite having no military experience, attacked her relentlessly on the war and national security. Sigh.

And of course, let’s not forget the moderate Republicans—like Iowa’s Jim Leach, a truly good man and capable public servant—who went down through no fault of their own. As so often happens in politics, the extremists and thugs run the country into the ditch and let the honest public servants pay with their jobs. Sad.

But now it’s time to get to work. If this Congress is as dangerously negligent as the last, they will be just as deserving of ouster. They must lead now, boldly. And we must hold their feet to the fire.
So, one month later, I am back on the horse. The problems haven’t gone away, and neither have the responsibilities of citizenship. This will be an interesting year.