Can't We All Just Get Along?

I am, like so many other Americans, sick of our federal government's inability to do . . . well, anything but argue!  As I warned everyone in my first post, I am a Democrat with the occasional Republican attitude regarding certain government programs.  With that being said, the ball has been dropped.  It doesn't matter whether the ball was dropped by a Republican or a Democrat;  all that matters is that both Democrats and Republicans are now playing keep away with it, as opposed to making efforts to send it (through the hoop, into the goal, into the endzone - pick your preferred sports reference).  As a result, our nation is facing an unimaginably high deficit and the possibility (probability) of a government shutdown.  Neither side is willing to compromise, and with a Republican-controlled House and Democrat-controlled Senate and White House that leads to a whole lot of NOTHNG.  No solutions to the problems with the economy.  No solutions for how to reduce our deficit.  Nothing.

Now, here is the Democrat in me.  First of all, I get really tired of listening to people complain about how Obama has done "nothing" during his time in the White House and blaming all of the country's problems on him.  First of all, he wasn't given much to work with. The economy was already in shambles when he became President, and the government deficit was already record-breaking.  With the economy in the shape that it was in, and with the number of Americans that were drawing unemployment as a result, I can't figure how the Obama administration is expected to reduce the deficit in just two and a half years.  It is also difficult to reduce the deficit when the Republican House is continuously demanding spending cuts, even after Obama agreed to previously-requested spending cuts.  The Democrats in Congress are also refusing to play nicely on the playground.  Concessions are nearly impossible to achieve, and some Democrats have now taken to criticizing Obama for "giving in" to Republican demands.

JUST DO SOMETHING!! Anything, really. Even if one side completely concedes, and even if that side is the one that I agree with, that is better than nothing. The government can at least keep running, and maybe the prevailing side will return the favor in the future.  Everyone needs to stop talking about compromise and just do it.

Completely unrelated, I feel like another story in the news today is worth noting.  A second grader was pepper sprayed by police officers after going into a wild temper tantrum at school.  The temper tantrum was such that the kid was throwing chairs and threatening teachers with a sharp wooden object, telling the teachers that he was going to kill them.  The child and his mother were interviewed on GMA this morning.  When asked what caused the tantrum, the child basically said he was just mad because he didn't want to be at school, and because school officials wouldn't let him do something that he wanted to do.

I'm not sure whose side I am on.  Maybe it is because I don't have kids, and if I did I would be infuriated that the police would pepper spray a 7 or 8 year old.  I do find it unfortunate, however, that no one is talking about how unacceptable it is for a student to attack school personnel and go into such a rage over the fact that he has to go to school.  Get over it, kid.  One story I read, I believe from the Today show, said that his behavioral problems are only brought on by school.  The story further notes that the child has not been diagnosed with any disorder, which makes it sound, to me, like the kid just throws violent tantrums when he doesn't get his way.  In which case, while pepper spraying a kid does sound a bit drastic, why should a teacher be forced to endure being hit over the head with a flying chair or stabbed with a wooden object?  Why should a police officer have to endure those things either?  Ultimately, I think the story paints a sad picture all around.