Personal Reflections of a Middle-Aged Man

patriot: one who loves and supports his or her country

—Merriam-Webster

I am being very general in my thoughts here I will fully acknowledge. There are some politicians who might be patriots, but they don’t appear to push their constituents, businesses, nor other politicians hard enough to do what’s right for us all, in my humble opinion.

The theory of politicians as non-patriots came to me during a recent drive to Ohio and back. It is a nine hour round trip drive to see my family who lives there.

I get to travel on city streets, freeways and a country road (this one paved).

The trip takes me through major cities, small towns and unincorporated country. It is a beautiful drive, except for some major obstacles.

Pot holes and decay.

Some of the pot holes are deep enough to break your axle in if you hit them just right. Plus people swerving to miss them create dangerous driving conditions.

There were bridges being held together by netting or their columns missing large chunks of concrete.

Patriots wouldn’t have allowed things to get this bad!

And that is just the tip of the iceberg.

Those are the things that are quite plain to see as we use them everyday.

What about child hunger, people with mental health issues living on the street, homelessness, schools falling apart, the opioid crisis and the lack of common sense gun control?

A patriot would send more than thoughts and prayer after a school shooting of any type. A patriot would not let students remain in schools containing asbestos and using texts extremely out-of-date. A patriot would not allow deregulation that causes harm to people and the environment. A patriot would not, nor continue to, ignore climate change. A patriot would not allow money to have more influence over politics than voters. A patriot would not allow voter suppression and gerrymandering. A patriot would not stand by and do nothing about a foreign nation interfering in our elections. A patriot would not allow a tyrant to take control of the country without keeping him in check.

Have we gone too far down the wrong fork in the road that we can’t make it back on track for a better tomorrow?

Have we, the citizens of this great nation, forgotten our own patriotism by not being informed voters nor exercising our right to vote in every single election?

I wonder if we have the will, the grit, the gumption to be patriots and hold our politicians fully accountable?

I work to do my part to move us back to a path that helps both the most down-trodden and those doing well.

What about you?

*I would put most major companies in this category as well. If a company isn’t paying taxes or are asking for huge tax breaks to enter a community, don’t keep their properties and parking lots in excellent shape, aren’t supporting local schools and community organizations, they too are not patriots.