November and the non negotiables

It's September and as an old song suggests, the days "dwindle down" as the main event of the last four years draws closer and closer to its November decision.

Curiously, although the complete herd of candidates offers lots of comments, there really don't seem to be any issues that voters can — if you can say such a thing — get there their teeth into.

There is a topic, however, mentioned quietly, and attacked quietly. Everyone seems to ignore or forget its importance. Stay tuned.

The big topic, forced onto us mostly by the media and accepted by the candidates, is the economy, often treated as though it were someone's female relation hiding out somewhere and about to be ravished. The economy is not something that can be controlled by the governing body in this or any other country, although it has been tried in many.

The economy of state or nation or any other entity is controlled by other things that the government has no business tampering with, except, perhaps, enforcing laws against theft or swindling (a kind of theft) or related crimes.

An elected government, regardless at what level in this country, is supported by and is expected to protect its electorate, which is what funds the government through taxes. Despite the antics in Washington (or elsewhere), the money does not belong to the congress, nor to the president, nor even to the secretary of the treasury. It belongs to the people who provided it and should used for those people.

Because he is the head man, the president is often held responsible for everything bad that happens and very little of the good. This would seem even to include natural disasters. This country was founded on the idea of liberty. The idea remains, but personal liberty always has a price. The Europeans to settled what is now the United States knew this and many of them paid a heavy price. Americans have continued to pay the price.

But liberty has changed. Liberty is, to a certain extent at least, the right to do whatever you want, even if it is stupid. When that happens — a financial debacle, say — suddenly the liberty-loving groups who foolishly lost their money, want the government to fix it. I throw my money away and expect you to pay.

Of course this issue is negotiable, and will be the subject of chatter through the rest of the campaigns.

This is a large part of the current economic problem, the "economy" our candidates are talking about.

But some issues, if they surface, at not negotiable.

What they are not talking about are the life issues, in particular the abortion issue, although there are four more, including one almost as active at the abortion issue: euthanasia.

If the Republican candidates want strike is an issue the other party cannot fight except with whines and complaints, those issues, especially the two listed, are good ones to use. Some voters, because of their faith, may not vote for a pro-abortion candidate. The issue is considered non negotiable.

Quite a number of people seem to feel that way. Yet it has not become an issue so far in this campaign except for Sarah Palin who is castigated for not aborting her youngest child and for not forcing her pregnant — and planning to marry — daughter to have an abortion.

Interesting. No?

Probably no one noticed I was gone

I have ignored my blog for most of the summer, having got myself embroiled in the process of book publishing, a slow, tiresome, mistake-ridden and aggravating task, worsened by the fact that, although I have been both a small magazine and a daily newspaper editor, I have never before been burdened with the task of formatting for the print process.

Wow! I ought to go back and count the words in that paragraph, but will not because it is too intimidating.

I initially started this blog with the intentions stated at the top of the page ("Not much news, but plenty of opinions. Controversial? Sure. Sometimes a little nostalgic? Sure. Sometimes a little silly? You bet.") and planned to update it at least several times a week. Now that I may have go the hang of formatting (is that possible?) I plan to attempt to continue or perhaps resume the plan and also to use the site for comment and occasionally to promote my literary efforts.