Politics 8-(

I try to avoid discussing politics.

People's opinions have polarized.  There seem to be more low-information voters than ever before.  I believe that is because we lost many of our shared sources of information.  We now have 4473 channels of cable and are wired to 18 separate devices.  OK, I made those numbers up....but you almost believed it.

The stagnate recovery also contributes to the polarization.  Every other recovery was like a super-ball bouncing off the pavement.  This recovery has been more like a raw egg hitting the pavement.  All we see is our own little slice of reality and we wonder, "Who short-stopped my piece of the cheese?"  That makes us mad.

Some snippets from the news:

From Sultan Knish

The government shutdown has forced Obama to make do with only a quarter of his 1,701 person staff. That would leave 436 “vital” employees. The 90 people who look after his living quarters would be slashed to 15 to “provide minimum maintenance and support”.

On Twitter, Michelle Obama announced that she is unable to Tweet on her own without the aid of all of her sixteen assistants; many of whom take home six figure salaries. There are more directors, associate directors and deputy associate directors on Michelle Obama’s staff than there were in George Washington’s entire administration.

From Breitbart

Shawn Moran, Vice President of the National Border Patrol Council,<snip> claimed that Border Patrol management has begun the practice of ordering Border Patrol Agents to stand down and cease pursuing drug smugglers, human smugglers and traffickers, and illegal aliens. He also warned it could lead to illegal aliens entering the country from nations associated with terrorism.

“It doesn’t matter whether it’s drugs, bodies, or how large the group is, our agents are being ordered to stand down by Border Patrol management,” said Moran. "I have received reports from our agents in every single sector from San Diego to the Rio Grande Valley in Texas that they are receiving these orders."

From Fox

The U.S. military has...Catholic chaplains...banning them from celebrating weekend Mass. At least one chaplain was told that if he engaged in any ministry activity, he would be subjected to disciplinary action.

A well-placed source told me that a furloughed Air Force chaplain was threatened after he offered to forgo pay. The chaplain was told he could not go on base or enter his chapel offices. He was also barred from engaging in any ministry activity.

Precinct Ball-Busting

The behaviors listed above may have some utility in The Big City.  Precinct Ball-Busting is used to keep order within the political machine.  But the foundation beneath those behaviors is the Democratic monopoly on power within those big cities.  Monopolies are notorious for boorish behaviors.  Their customers have no other choice.

The Chicago politicians who are in the highest circle of the Executive Branch returned to their roots when they did not get their way.  Those roots are no longer embedded in their native soil.  The United States is more heterogenous than Chicago.

We have choices.