Like sheep to slaughter

While watching the media coverage of the President's 2012 budget, I asked myself why is it that so many Americans sit idly by while our leadership continues to "tank" our economy and our dollar? Why is it that so many buy into the notion that the only way out of our fiscal spending addiction is to continue to spend more? Why is it that we believe that the acts of our leaders are selfless and not selfish?

After screaming at the television screen, I finally came to the conclusion that "we the people" mistakenly believe and trust that those in power are smarter than us or know better than we do. We believe that they are wise and that their motives are pure. We believe that they are there to good for us...for America. We believe that their actions or non-actions are performed with only the best of intent. With very few exceptions, we are being taken for a ride.

I am reminded of my former profession working for a very large US corporation. In a period of eight years the company changed CEO's four times. Each new executive would come in and drastically change what his predecessor had done. It mattered not how many hundreds of millions of dollars had been spent prior, each new executive would alter the company to his ideal vision. The result of this executive revolving door? Bankruptcy-twice in that period of time. Imagine what the CEO of this great nation is doing to our future, considering that bankruptcy is not an option.

Unfortunately, like the employee and the CEO, we trust that those who make the decisions that can dramatically alter the path that America is on, are trustworthy and are smarter than we are. Consider: Madoff, Skilling, Nachio, Ebbers, Lay, Koslowski-all leaders who appeared to have the skills and acumen to take their respective companies to new heights. Where are they now and what form of skeletal remains are left of the companies they oversaw? The trail of broken souls left by these executives is long.

We blindly follow the path without questioning the brilliance of the folks doing the navigating. Perhaps it's time that we all recognize that just because someone assumes a position of importance, it doesn't necessarily mean that they're qualified to do it. Perhaps it's time that we consider that the management of America might only care about one thing: Transforming this nation into their ideal vision, regardless of cost or consequence?

I think it's time for another change in the executive office. If not, I fear that our grandchildren will look upon our reticence as the catalyst that brought about an Enron-style collapse of this great nation, with nothing left but the bones of a once great society.


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