The curse of compromise

Imagine you are standing in the center of a teeter-totter. In the middle, you are perfectly balanced.

Now imagine you move to the left by one foot. Suddenly, you are unbalanced - and the left end of your teeter-totter is resting on the dirt.

Two people walk by and see your plight. One (having never been made to take math)suggests you move 3 more feet to the left, the other suggests moving one foot to the right. You decide to ignore the balance point (since you are a 'moderate') you decide instead (so everyone can 'get along') to compromise and move the average distance suggested... one more foot to the left. Result - you are even further from the balance point and your board is now buried in the dirt.

That is what has happened to our country folks. The 'balance' point is a correct constitutional balance between the Federal government and the States and between personal liberty and Government control.

We currently are like 27 feet to the left of the balance point. The Tea Party did not want to crash the government - they simply want us to move closer to the balance point - maybe like 5 feet. The Left wanted to move further to the left - like 8 more feet.

So, the compromise being advocated by the Left (and sadly, you Moderates out there) would move us FURTHER from where we should be.

This is why, correctly, the Tea Party refused the 'grand bargain' because it was no bargain at all. They were painted as (with links lest you think I exaggerate) terrorists and arsonists (from the Vice President, jihadists, obstructionist, of course racist (from an NPR exec-partially funded by taxpayers(because we all know you cannot disagree with a Black president if you are not racist), radical hostage takers , blah blah blah. All this from the party always preaching civility. Now there's a laugher.

No, they were simply standing for a principle- that of returning to a proper sized Federal government. The deficit is not because we tax ourselves to little - it is because the Fed simply spends too much.

I think the left is in panic mode. In a recent Gallup poll, reported here , more people say they support the Tea Party agenda than say the are 'liberal'. When you can't win the battle of ideas, resort to personal attacks?


The net result of the so-called 'debt ceiling crisis'(which was never a crisis)? Sadly, we moved no closer to the proper balance - we simply slowed the move to the Left - our deficits still grow. With patience, and tremendous tenacity - and only if the American people 'get it' - we MIGHT be able to turn the ship of state around. But, at this point, I give us only a 1 in 4 chance.... Sorry for the pessimism, but the times do not really call for optimism.