We The People

November 4, 2008

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“Politicians are like diapers.  They both need changing regularly and for the same reason.”

~Author Unknown

Today is our election day.  These words aren’t what I’d planned.
But here I am with all these thoughts.  I guess I’ll raise my hand.

I won’t get into right or wrong, or who I think should win.
Just take a look at what we need.  Our choice is pretty thin.

Our country doesn’t need a tweak, it needs an overhaul.
And if we don’t address it soon, we’ll smash into a wall.

Our education lies in fragments, shattered on the floor.
We the people must declare that we won’t take it any more.

Social Security is a joke, but not of the HA-HA kind.
How can we cast a careful vote, and keep it absent from our mind?

The economy… I shouldn’t start.  I might not ever stop.
Didn’t we all know the other shoe was bound to drop?

Now what I am about to say, I admit it’s touchy stuff,
but I don’t think that either guy can really do enough.

There’s just too much that must be done that isn’t in the scheme.
And If it goes unheeded, we will surely dim the dream.

Empires fade from suicide.  They whither from within.
We can peer through history to find ourselves a twin.

There are plenty parallels, let’s take some time to see;
Roman gladiators echoed on reality TV.

Each of us should do our share, and understand the facts.
Take the time to comprehend, minus the attacks.

It isn’t only black and white, most everything is gray.
Before we reach tomorrow, we should talk about today.

We didn’t get to where we are by some grand accident.
We’re only here because of how our decades have been spent.

We buy a lot, we spend a lot, and then we hit repeat.
We never want the sour, but we always want the sweet.

On this fair election day, I suggest we all reflect.
There are more important things than who we should elect.

The most important thing we have is who we are inside.
Can we stand up tall and wave our country’s flag with pride?

We shouldn’t look to Washington to solve our every hitch,
to keep us all from going poor, or help to make us rich.

Government by populace means populace should rule.
We must be intelligent and never act the fool.

I am optimistic that we’ll pull a proper course.
Wipe the dust away, and swing back on our horse.

Today is our election day.  Tomorrow is first light.
No matter who the winner, it is our chance to do things right.

Writer Dad

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  • Hi Sean,

    What wonderful and inspiring writer. Well thought out and well revised I am sure. I am curious as to how long it takes you to craft such pieces. Years of business school have taught me to be straight and to the point. How I do miss poetic writing though. These sediments really get to the heart of what a lot of people are feeling right now. I applaud you for this great post.

    Cheers,
    Jeremy

    <abbr>Jeremy Days last blog post..21 Reasons Why This Election Makes Americans Sick to Their Stomachs</abbr>
  • Nicely said WD. Especially the part about "everything is gray" and about "The most important thing we have is who we are inside." An important day today in the US...

    <abbr>Lances last blog post..Guest Post: What’s Your Best Effort?</abbr>
  • "We buy a lot, we spend a lot, and then we hit repeat.
    We never want the sour, but we always want the sweet."

    Beautifully said, Sean! This line sums up SO much of why we're in this economic rut. The whole post/poem is great. :-) Eric.

    <abbr>Eric Hamms last blog post..M2A! October Week4: The Benefits Of Intentionally Stressing Your System</abbr>
  • All I can say to you Americans, is that you should vote with conscience, not anger.

    All the best, and if your candidate doesn't get elected, take it with grace :)

    <abbr>Miguel de Luiss last blog post..Oliver Twist lives! (part 1)</abbr>
  • We Canadians are especially electionned-out (as we just had one of our own, just a few weeks ago).

    But we're such wannabees, we haven't had enough of OUR federal election. We want to be involved in YOURS.

    We're talking about it in the elevators, at the water coolers at work, it's on our front-page headlines. Obama this...McCain that. (Oh Dear! How will it affect us?)

    And Tina Fey was funny at first. But you know what? I'm rapidly reaching my saturation level. Okay. Sarah Pailin is an idiot. Ha hah We get it. (ENOUGH already!)

    Argh. Thank God it will soon be over.

    Then we can go back to worrying about more important things we usually obsess over.

    Like who Hanna Montana is dating. Or the color of Paris Hilton's new pet Chihuahua! :-)

    <abbr>Friars last blog post..No Soup for Me!</abbr>
  • Awesome, Sean!! I especially love your point about how it's really about the people, not just a leader, and how we should think about what that really means. Otherwise, we look to one person, or one government, to miraculously make things right, which is obviously not effective.

    <abbr>stephs last blog post..What I Know for Sure, No. 2</abbr>
  • "Roman gladiators echoed on reality TV."

    Ouch. But honest. And beautiful.

    <abbr>Hayden Tompkinss last blog post..The Courage to Leap</abbr>
  • Once again, kudo's to you my friend. I think that each of us will take something from this, and the wonderful thing is, people may step away after reading this, with a positive thought that you may not have intentioned. That is the beauty of great writing.

    My favorite was
    "We buy a lot, we spend a lot, and then we hit repeat.
    We never want the sour, but we always want the sweet."

    I'm forever discussing our cultures over-consumption and it's effects on society.

    Thank you.

    Adam

    <abbr>Adam Shakes last blog post..Indian Air Powered Car Coming to U.S. in 2009</abbr>
  • Writer Dad
    Jeremy: Usually, a piece like that comes together with immediacy; twenty minutes or so. Then there's a lot of fine tuning. That particular piece came together a bit faster. The first several lines came to me yesterday morning on the way home from taking my children to school. I finished it without stopping once home. It was a fast edit with a couple of suggestions from Dave (Blogger Dad) which made the flow a wee bit tighter. Thanks for the compliments. I was a bit unsure, but I'm happy I wrote it.

    Lance: It is indeed. A lot of our tomorrows hinge on today.

    Eric: I'm smiling because I think that's my favorite line. I was at a red light when it happened. It turned green, and I hit the gas pleased as punch.

    Miguel: Well put. Did you think this sounded a bit like Lucas? I did. I think he's going to make an appearance on Friday.

    Friar: It's pink, though I hear she's scheduling him for purple pretty soon.

    Hayden: The only difference I see is the Coliseum.

    Adam: Thank you. I am infinitely happier with this post then I was when I laid my head on my pillow. I'm glad I didn't ignore election day. It wouldn't have been the right thing to do.
  • Yes, WD, it did sound a bit like him. I guess his dad has taught him well, same funny wisdom. I look forward at the next wee book.
  • Hah! I love it, Sean! Yours is the same message I have touched on so many times in the past months...WE THE PEOPLE must take responsibility for ourselves, our actions, our choices and the examples that we set. Perhaps then the politicians we elect will take their cues from US and do a few things right...

    Kuddos to you, Writer Dad!

    <abbr>Kimmelins last blog post..Using My Voice</abbr>
  • I can listen, learn, and vote -- and yes, I did -- but it's my day-to-day that matters. Thank goodness, we get do-overs every dawn to have "our chance to do things right."
  • Bravo! and Thank you...love how all the words just come together. I needed a smile today. And lest we forget, it is such a tight race all over the US that there will be a great many folks who will be disappointed and sad...but we can all get up and make a difference - what a good thought.

    <abbr>Patricias last blog post..Hats Off to The Ladies of The Club</abbr>
  • Beautiful poem. I love: “We buy a lot, we spend a lot, and then we hit repeat." We can live on a lot less than what we think we need, if only we'd pause long enough to see that.

    I've thought of trying my hand at poetry, something I don't have much experience in...I think I'll give it a shot. Thanks for the inspiration.

    <abbr>Stacey Shipmans last blog post..Part II: Are You Thinking BIG Enough?</abbr>
  • Outstanding! I love it! I'm so saving this.

    Just one thing...

    "There are more important things than who we should elect."

    Really? Today? In general, yes, but today? Can't imagine anything more important.
  • I have never felt more hopeful than I do right now. I also am quite confidant that until my kid was born I had no clue as to what voting was all about. She only magnifies the need to get it right.

    Great words!

    <abbr>DC Urban Dads last blog post..Today, balls will drop</abbr>
  • Nicely said WD. I am hoping for a positive change tonight. It's about time.

    <abbr>Jamess last blog post..Meanwhile in Another Universe...</abbr>
  • Dude, I voted and I SO agree with you on this. I can't wait for it all to be over with. Then maybe I can turn my answering machine back on without it filling up with political campaign calls every 4 hours. Geesh.

    <abbr>Jamie Simmermans last blog post..How Not to Plagiarize on the Net</abbr>
  • Writer Dad
    Sorry guys, there's a whole string of comments missing (mine not yours). I have no idea what happened to them. Again.

    Miguel: I'll send you on another one of his adventures in a future email. On Friday, I'm going to reintroduce him with the wee-book you've already read.

    Kimmelin: We cannot elect a fearless leader and expect them to solve all our problems. Our country is exactly what WE make it. No more, no less.

    Lori: Every day is twenty-four hours of second chances, preceded by another.

    Stacey: You are quite welcome. Please, please share it when you do.

    Bruce: What I mean by that, isn't that the election isn't important, only that no matter who it is, it is only a beginning. WE THE PEOPLE decide our fate.

    DC Urban Dad: True that. I'm optimistic as well. Sometimes things need to dip before they can rise again.

    James: Yes, Sir.

    Jamie: Me too. I'm excited for the dawn.
  • Laurie
    And a poet too? WOW Sean, very good!
    I believe one of the biggest problems is that "We the People" don't want to take responsibility for ourselves or our children. We believe the rules are for everyone except ourselves. When we screw up, we don't want to accept the consequence of our actions. I believe this is a big problem with education. I believe this causes and inflated number of people to be in different government programs. I believe this causes a lot of frivolous law suits which drives up the cost of insurance. We all act as if we are intitled.

    The government shouldn't be responsible for us. We should be responsible for ourselves. We also should all help our neighbor during tough times instead of relaying on Uncle Sam. That way not only is helping more efficient with less waste, but I also have the joy of giving to another human in need.

    Very nice poem. I felt very red, white, and blue while reading it!
  • It is our chance to be inspired indeed.

    <abbr>Jannies last blog post..Caught red-pawed!</abbr>
  • I totally agree with your poem.
    I wish I could write poetry that powerful, Sean!

    <abbr>Linda Abbits last blog post..Funny Fridays for Halloween: Because It’s Better to Laugh than to Cry!</abbr>
  • Today, tomorrow, and the next day are all much of a muchness...

    Cool quote, and wonderful poem sir!

    One way or another, we were going to make history today...let us hope it is the sort of history we will continue to be proud of long after it is but a chapter in the lesson books.

    Shade and Sweetwater,
    K

    <abbr>Kyddryns last blog post..Two Letters, One Election</abbr>
  • WriterDad, I saw this yesterday but didn't comment.

    I wanted to wait for the result.

    The feeling over here in the UK is that there's a chance for the world to enjoya new begining and if everyone takes the attitude you are advocating, the chance could be far better than even.

    Nice words WD.

    <abbr>Dave Fowlers last blog post..What I Learnt From Crashing The Car – Part 2</abbr>
  • Sean,

    Hmmm, I read this when it came out, I didn't realize I forgot to leave a comment, sorry about that, I was completly entranced by this. Very well written and such beautiful images.

    Our family has discussed the similarities betwen the Roman Empire and some of the fallacies of common thinking in our society today. And one of us always says, "Yeah...and you see where it got them..."

    It is so important to learn from history.

    Thanks, I was reading around and decided to enjoy it again. It was worth it.

    <abbr>Wendi Kelly-Life's Little Inspirationss last blog post..High Flying Faith</abbr>
  • Writer Dad
    Laurie: We DO act as though we're all entitled. I'm glad you liked it. I wasn't going to talk about the election at all, but I felt suddenly moved after dropping my daughter off at school. Lucky, I had a notebook. It was mostly written by the time I got home. I agree with everything you've said.

    Jannie: Yes, ma'am.

    Linda: Thank you, Linda. Perhaps you can. Just believe.

    Kyddryn: We did.

    Dave: Thanks, Dave. America was a good place to be on Election Day.

    Wendi: It is of the highest compliment that you came back for seconds, Wendi. I've been swamped this week. Sorry it took so long for me to respond. I hope your weekend has been wonderful.
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