Stay the Course

Are we eating our own?  Like many conservatives, I was salivating for a government shutdown.  The attempt to impose fear of that possibility bounced off me. It was difficult to ascertain any negatives regarding the idea of muzzling the behemoth that has become our federal government.  Shutdown?  Yes!  Please!  Like many conservatives, I was very disappointed when our side backed away from a shutdown.  I was disappointed with the number $38.5 billion.  It feels like trying to bail water on the Titanic with a teaspoon.  However, I fear we are playing right into the hands of our opponents by allowing ourselves to be consumed with anger & frustration toward the Republicans in Congress.  Won't we accomplish much more if we offer encouragement and support?  The 87 new House members have got to be overwhelmed with the daunting task our nation faces.  I find the idea of becoming consumed with disgust counter-productive.  Let's instead focus on the fact that the American people brought the spending madness to a screeching halt on November 2 and-hey!-even cut some spending, albeit nowhere big enough.  Did we not realize, during last fall's campaign, that it will take several election cycles before this house is cleaned up?  Decades of neglect have left a tangled mess.  We cannot and should not expect overnight results.  My favorite people to hear from right now are not the old, washed up candidates of the past, but, rather, any one of the 87 fire-in-the-belly freshmen.  I often think when I hear them talk, I sent myself to D.C., so to speak.  Would I fold, if it were me in that city?  Absolutely NOT. And I would want to know the people back home believe in me and trust me.  After all, they picked me.