Data now exists that begins to make the “one dollar one vote” theory somewhat suspect; namely the spending patterns of this past Presidential Election. To be most effective, The People’s rallying cry should read: “The corporatization of our democracy must be stopped.” Yet the primary game afoot for big money seems now to be lobbying. According to OpenSecrets.com, lobbyists spent just short of $7 Billion during the past congressional season in search of legislative favors*. That’s over three (3) times the amount of money spent on the 2012 presidential election! What in the world is going on, and how can we stop it.

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How to start a rational discussion on gun control.

Few of us will ever forget the events that transpired in Newtown, CT on Friday, December 14, 2012 and the visceral battle that ensued between pro and anti-gun forces over the next few days. We all suspect that a rational discussion of gun control is possible, but how could we have hoped for any meaningful dialog at that time when both sides were seeing red?

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Governor Romney is promising that if we deregulate business and reduce their tax burden, they’ll create tons of jobs. President Obama is saying that the recovery has been successful and that we just need to stay the course. But wait! Corporate profits have been at an all-time high since mid-2009, yet so has unemployment; and the jobs created over the last four years are considered low-wage. Neither of these guys has a decent plan to help the 99%, but one is less worse than the other.

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I have long since studied the various arguments both for and against the Electoral College, including its effect on voter behavior and turnout, representation of smaller states, and the way presidential candidates design campaigns. But recently, I had an epiphany. I uncovered a nexus of seemingly unrelated factors that could not have even been imagined by the Founders that in turn has created a huge blind-spot in the fairness of the electoral process.

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Many poeple, perhaps even the majority of Americans say that they tend to be fiscally conservative, yet liberal on social issues. Those same people constantly lament the fact that they have no political party. Now you do. Welcome!

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One of the few protections against corruption in government previously afforded The People was a free press; one that exists, at least in part, to inform us of wrong doings in the government. However, the fact is that all commercial media news outlets now exist first and foremost to create profits, and will do whatever it takes (like posting misleading headlines) to maximize the bottom line. As such, truth now takes a back seat to circulation, listenership, and viewership. In short, we are on our own folks, which is why we have to take an active role in educating and protecting each other.

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Conservatives and liberals are constantly pointing out each other’s foibles; but in doing so, They often fail to see that in principle, they are in total agreement. This begs the question: What is it about today’s political landscape that keeps people from finding common ground? In this, my first issue of “Stuck in the Middle”, I will map out today’s political landscape and position each parties overal ideologoies. Only when we understand and acknowledge all viewpoints can we being to seek areas and levels of comporomise.

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The founders were so aware of the oil and water relationship between politics and religion that they wrote a specific clause into the constitution; not banning religion, but stating that the government will not force people to practice a specific religion. Yet here we are, debating, amongst other things, a Christian’s statement and how Christians should react to it. Sure, it makes for lively conversation, but does it belong in a dialog concerning the potential election to a body which specifically has, as a mandate, the separation of CHURCH — not synagogue, not mosque, but of church and state?

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