Sunday, August 14, 2011

Will We Ever Again Hear GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAALLLLLL?

In soccer the goalie's main job is to deflect all shots and stop his opponent from scoring.
He is charged with the task of keeping others from attaining their goals.
Great goalies are world renowned and among the highest paid in their sport.
In America soccer has taken a long time to gain a foothold.
This is because we love high scoring events with prodigious offensive outbursts over defensive struggles that are considered boring.
And that's a shame because in many ways a good defense is the best offense.
A one on one match up between a forward and the goalie featuring a penalty kick is one of the most exciting plays in the game.
Tension mounts as the cool level-headed players face each other.
With striker and goalie intent on reading any sign of movement, any edge to anticipate, react and stop the other the crowd hushes.
One wishes to score, the other needs to stop him.
In an incredibly similar way our politicians have been playing this same game for years.
Unfortunately those in the vast but shrinking middle class have had their goals deflected more and more to the point where no one even talks about scoring anymore, merely surviving the game.
Republicans, and their well funded new arm in the T-Party have become the goalkeepers who have become quite adept at total deflection.
Think of what's going on in the country today:
Unemployment and under employment is at horrendous and dangerously high levels;
Corporations, many who received bailouts and are still receiving tax subsidies are reaping in the profits AND KEEPING THEM;
The only jobs our young college graduates can find are unpaid internships with these greedy fat corporations;
Anyone lucky enough to gain new employment does so at a lower rate with less benefits if any;
Health care costs and insurance premiums to supposedly cover those costs have increased through the roof with co-pays/co-insurance/deductibles and 'un-covered' treatments adding to the costs;
And health care insurance companies' profits rival those of big oil;
Our nation's infrastructure, the very roads upon which we travel or water mains through which we receive that precious liquid is falling apart;
BUT the news is filled with stories about NEXT YEAR'S REPUBLICAN CANDIDATE FOR PRESIDENT!
And the Republicans keep it thus by deflecting all eyes away from the current needs of the country.
These above noted needs if addressed and fixed would ultimately help all of us.
BUT THEY MUST BE DEFLECTED AT ALL COSTS if the 'right' is to have any chance of gaining total control of the government.
And if that happens they will be free to use their perceived mandate as license to further kill the middle class' former American dream.
This would seem to be un-American activities bordering on terrorism and yet they deflect our eyes by calling President Obama anti-American even questioning his citizenship!
DEFLECT!
No goal for you!
When the Democrats decry tax cuts for the wealthiest 2% of the country the Republicans claim those people are the job creators and must not be harmed.
DEFLECT!!
When Speaker of the House Boehner accidentally allowed $17 Billion in spending for Pell Grants aimed at aiding education his entire party objected and stalled debt ceiling talks claiming runaway costs.
DEFLECT!!!
And when President Obama talks about adding revenue to the country's coffers in order to get us out of this terrible depression by asking the wealthiest Americans to merely contribute their FAIR SHARE Republicans claim class warfare and job killing policies.
DEFLECT!!!!
Speaker Boehner proudly proclaimed that he had been able to get 98% of what he wanted in the debt and deficit talks.  That is a fairly telling number which leaves 2%, the same number of Americans who are also left out of the tax rolls and go 'scot-free' during this social and economic crisis.
It has been said that what you don't know won't hurt you.
For years Americans did not know much about soccer.
Sadly we are learning about the great game in an interesting way, through the eyes of the deflecting goalies of the 'do-nothing' 'stop all progress at any cost' Republican Party.
They have turned our lives into a game for which they have written the rules and appear to be the referees.
And if someone has the nerve to point this fact out they will deflect by blaming Obama or saying something innocuous such as, "Lovely weather we're having!"  Of course they also deny Global Warming - AKA climate change but that's another deflection, I mean story.
GOOOOOOOAAAAAAALLLLL!
Unless and until we as a nation come to grips with this tactic and rise up to defeat it we will never score a goal  again, let alone be victorious.

And we and our children will be shut out of our own futures!

2 comments:

train buddy said...

Thought for a minute you were going to write an article about my son. Too bad. In the future, for a price I'll let you have some of my son's action shots.

Reschzoo said...

Thanks 'Buddy!' Can't wait!
He has a future in the game and hopefully one that can allow him to live comfortably in America!
Cheers!
GOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLL!