“We have left undone those things which we ought to have done; and we have done those things which we ought not to have done. And there is no health in us.” ~ Morning Prayer, General Confession, Anglican Book of Common Prayer
I published a diary page just after the midterm election, with the same quote at the top. My biggest point in that essay was that we spend too much time on trivialities and don't pay enough attention to what really matters in the US today. And reflecting on my thoughts then, I am still perplexed - first by the voters as to why they let the GOP gain control, and now, at the Gop as to why they really can't grasp what the country needs.
Of course, the answer to the later is MONEY and POWER. Those are the two corrupting factors that have, throughout history, driven humans to act outside the community interest. Self-interest will always win, and in the current political climate, self-interest is the only factor that is totally apparent. The politicians (and I won't entirely exonerate the Democrats here) LOVE their trappings and impression of having power, and being trapped by that system, love the money they get from the oligarchs who keep them there.
The oligarchs - the rich, Wall Street, and the corporations - in their turn LOVE the power they have; the ability to have it all their way while making sure that the 'little people' are kept down just enough to stay below the margin of poverty and ignorance that would cause rebellion against the plutocracy and oligarchy.
These desires for money and power are the driving forces behind what is happening in the US today. The question of WHY doesn't relate to this culture of selfishness we've developed; rather, it relates to us, the 'regular folks' who have become so complacent as to allow the 1% to get away with their cultivation of privilege and have so badly ignored the values we so extol as the basis for our lives as citizens.
This question, and others like it, are things I will be exploring in future diaries. Please feel free to chime in with comments and ideas. Your homework, as I see it, will be to THINKon these things.