Remember, We All Have Something to be Thankful For in America

As a nation, we appear at odds with a national holiday that is supposed to be a time to reflect and give thanks for all that we have. For our founders, the items on that thanksgiving list was pretty short: food, shelter and a fighting chance to live another year. But they were thankful. Unlike many of us.

The spirit of thanksgiving appears to have been dulled by the ingratitude borne of having had too much for entirely too long. Boredom breeds dissatisfaction. If you’re bored with your life situation, here’s a suggestion: put on your $1000 designer yoga workout clothes and go sleep outside without anything to eat for a couple of days. Think of it as extreme intermittent fasting(you can convince people to try almost any ridiculous idea if you add “extreme” to it).

You may find your perspective changes.

As one of those people who likely has more time expired than remaining, I’m thankful without the need to do anything extreme. Or intermittent. I’m thankful for our home, my family, my health and for you. Yep, I’m thankful for each and every one of you. Even when you complain.

Without you, I’d probably be working to keep a job as the “Worst Greeter-Ever-At Walmart.” There aren’t a lot of gainful employment opportunities for those of us beyond a certain age.

Times change. And we’re headed for changes in the months ahead and as we used to say as kids, “Ready or not, here I come.”

This isn’t a political essay, but it is a hopeful thought or two from someone who has been around long enough to remember when politicians didn’t call voters “garbage” or refer to them as “a basket of deplorables.” When presidents didn’t do, say, or advocate conduct that would get a nine-year old a mouth full of soap and a butt-whipping.

I offer not breathless speculation on what those changes will mean as #45 becomes #47 and #46 dodders off into his sunset, but I do realize there’s a good chance the rest of Washington’s institutionalized and entrenched power structure may be roiled, if not reshaped.

No matter which side of the political aisle you occupy, you have to at least suspect changes in the way Washington conducts business would be a good thing. Shaking up an enormous entrenched bureaucracy that has inverted the way government is supposed to work is a good thing.

For years, bureaucrats have simply hunkered down and waited out their elected bosses. Along the way our governmental operating system has ballooned from 5,000 words (the Constitution) to innumerable pages today. The United States Government Manual, which is only a listing of the “agencies of the legislative, executive and judicial branches of government” is 997 pages long. That’s not the operating manual, it’s just a guide to the agencies.

If you’re looking for a piece of reading that will demonstrate how the complexity of today’s system works against the citizenry — and the rule of law — I’d suggest Over Ruled by Associate Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch. The full title Over Ruled: The Human Toll of Too Much Law pretty much tells the story. Justice Gorsuch lays out in human terms how today’s convoluted legal and regulatory systems work contrary to the rule of law and enable bureaucracies to grind up individual citizens via confusion, obfuscation and overreach.

The rule of law? It’s the “principle under which all persons, institutions, and entities are accountable to laws that are: Publicly promulgated. Equally enforced. Independently adjudicated. And consistent with international human rights principles.”

Getting the federal government off our collective backs and back to something approaching a manageable size can’t be a bad thing…unless your enterprise is dependent on federal dollars. If it is, maybe it needs a little belt-tightening, too. But I’m off-topic. Today is our national day of Thanksgiving, not the time to open a can of political worms — for any of us.

On this most American holiday, I wish you something that’s scarce much of the time: peace. As part of that wish, I hope you’ll take time to look around your world for people around you who are hurting. If they there are, I pray you’ll do something to help.

Sometimes, all that requires is a kind word. If it takes more and you’re capable, I hope you will do more. And as always, thank you for being part of our extended Wire family. From our families to each of yours, best wishes for a blessed Thanksgiving and happy holiday season.

As always, we’ll keep you posted.