Special Comment- Political Brinkmanship

I cannot claim that I'm not an ideologue. I wish that policies were put into place that I like and I truly believe that they would make the nation a better place. However, I cannot pretend that the other side doesn't believe as I do. I also cannot deny the possibility that I could be wrong. Simply, I can not say that I am truly above the fray calling for civility and compromise.

That said, My feeling towards Congress is disdain. Too many people in Congress are putting their political identity ahead of the strength of the United States Government. There are many things to blame for the radicalizing of the House of Representatives. Gerry-Mandering, the influence of the special interests and the vicious-cycle that is created by the high incumbency rates. However, a person in Congress should have enough sense to avoid doing damaging things to the nation's government and economy.

We saw in the last Congress and I'm certain it will continue, unless there is a surprising rise of sense in our Nation's Capitol, the game of political brinkmanship played by, namely, the Republican-controlled House of Representatives. Issues that Congresses past had enough sense not to make a big deal about or hold hostage suddenly became major issues that required last minute deals. Notably, the fight to raise the debt ceiling, nearly causing the U.S. government to default, which would've been disastrous for our country and the world. That led directly to the recent 'fiscal cliff' fiasco and the punt made to stop that from being a disaster has just created a new, more dire situation.

It is a pretty obvious secret that government power and economic strength are largely illusions. There is no backing for the dollar. It's strength is the fact that U.S. treasury does not default. When someone is given a dollar it is backed by the power of the United States government. It's a long standing and stable government in a relatively peaceful society that has not been susceptible to sudden change.

This illusion is broken when House Republicans hold the debt ceiling hostage. Creditors suddenly see how close the Treasury is to defaulting at the whims of extremists within the U.S. government. U.S. citizens, even if ever so slightly, lose faith in the dollar. Consumers of our nations goods lose confidence.

The opportunity for those who have been elected to Congress was created by the relative stability of their government and economy. That was a result of Congresses before doing the basic things to maintain stability. Ideologies need to be put aside when it comes to severely damaging the nation's economy. To hell with a potential primary challenger. To hell with the Tea Party. You are there to govern and key to that is keeping the government functional. Your striving to please the political extremes by harming the government is damn near traitorous.

Basically, just do your fucking job, Congress.

-Michael