—-Roald Dahl
The midterm elections are over, and I for one am happy to see them go. The constant telephone interruptions from local, state and national candidates drove me crazy. I am not sure why they think we are more likely to vote for them when they interrupt our dinner, but that seems to be their strategy. My email box has been bombarded with constant requests for donations, too. Let me give you a bit of advice for future election cycles. NEVER donate in response to an internet request. Once they get that donation you will have to change your email address to ever have peace again. I definitely believe in supporting our candidates...just not giving them our email address or telephone number.
Now that the dust has settled, I have mixed feelings about the outcome. I think that although it might go against some people’s desire to have complete control, we should all be happy that the democrats regained the house. Many years ago the framers of our constitution designed the checks and balances in our system, and that, my friends is what makes America great. They believed that these checks and balances are essential for the security of liberty under the Constitution. When one party controls all three sections of our tripartite government, they tend to forget that they were actually elected to represent us all, not just their supporters.
It is only human nature, when there are few roadblocks, for one party to attempt to push their agenda to the limits. This sets a very dangerous precedent, no matter which party is in control at the time. Luckily our citizens are often wiser than their representatives, and they took back the reins in the voting box this past Tuesday. I am sure the next two years will not be easy ones, but at least both sides will have a hand in the forming of our laws and regulations.
Florida disappointed me again, but that is nothing out of the ordinary. I am not troubled because our governor is republican, some of our finest politicians represented that party. I am troubled because he seems to be a radically “right winged” republican, and I feel both the radical right and the radical left are a danger to the very liberty that we all fight to preserve. The rights of women, the LGBTQ community, and people of all races, religions (and no religion) need to be upheld, and I hope our new governor will stand up and protect us all. For my part, I will not prejudge him for past acts and statements he might have made and instead will give him the chance to prove that he was a positive choice for our state.
We may be disappointed with outcomes and complain about our government at times, but what has always made our country great is the very fact that we can complain as loudly as we want and then have the opportunity to vote for the changes we desire. The immigrants that so many people fear are men and women running from countries that do not afford them those rights. Even in our darkest hours we need to take heart in the fact that ultimately we the people have the final say, and usually we get it right.
With all of the turmoil in our world, it is no wonder that we have a hard time sleeping at night, but what is it that keeps the youngest in our families awake? Duck on a Disco Ball (A Duck in the Fridge Book) by Jeff Mack gives us the perfect explanation in a brightly illustrated manner. I generally review several children’s books in November and December to help you with your holiday shopping. I often go through quite a few before I find ones I can recommend, but I found this book on my first try. It is rare to find a children’s book that adults enjoy too, but this is the exception. Reading it brought back some of my own childhood fantasies, and I highly recommend it to you.
As always a complete review of this book follows my blog.
Happy reading,
- Beverly