The Political Realities Are Tough

I'm writing here what I believe lies at the center of much of the right wing obstruction of just about EVERYTHING in Congress. There was a HUGE political price for health care legislation, dubbed Obamacare, which by the way, I feel did not go far enough, as the public option was necessary. Whether you're for the health care law or against it is not the immediate point here. The conservative movement was demoralized after the 2008 election and revelations about sexual escapades for some prominent Republicans only hurt them further. The health care legislation gave them tremendous energy, and they played it to the hilt, obviously scaring the hell out of many Americans with the ads they ran, and, like it, not like it, it got Republicans back on their feet. The President seemed unable to concisely explain the legislation, although that's understandable for such an extensive subject. This left it open to attack by opponents, and attack they did. Since the passage of health care legislation, civilization hasn't ended, and favorability for the law has risen, although some of the more contentious aspects of the law are yet to be implemented.   

The health care struggle came as the country prepared for the 2010 Census. Those census numbers were then used to determine congressional apportionment for the House. The 2010 election was a major Republican victory, but not just because they took control of the House of Representatives, but because they won several key governorships and control of state legislatures, or strengthened existing majorities. These are the people who determine the redrawing of congressional district boundaries. Here in Ohio the Republicans were blatant about how they redrew the boundaries in their favor.* My congressman at that point was well known Democrat, Dennis Kucinich. He was essentially forced out by combining what was left of his district with a larger part of fellow Democrat Marcy Kaptur's district. She won the Democratic primary and then faced off against none other than Republican Joe the Plumber, less well known by his real name Samuel Wurzelbacher, whom she handily defeated. Betty Sutton, known for proposing the "cash for clunkers" program, had much of her district combined into a Republican leaning district which pitted her against incumbent GOP Jim Renacci. She lost in November. 

Democrats did very well last November for president and the Senate, AND they got more votes in total for the House of Representatives, but only gained 8 seats. That's because the districts were redrawn to GOP advantage in many cases. Conservative tilting districts were often solidified into strongly conservative districts, and middle of the road districts were often given at least a conservative tilt. The Republicans representing these districts do not feel the pressure of the public to cooperate with the President and Democrats, because many of their constituents agree with obstructing anything and everything Obama or any Democrat proposes. Barring some major shift in public opinion overall, we'd better get used to it too, because defeating Republicans in many of these districts will be very difficult AND if it is to be done, will likely require right-leaning Democratic candidates. 

"If" any gun legislation passes in the near future, it is likely to be watered down, just like the financial legislation, the stimulus, and the health care legislation got watered down. If the watered down versions fail to do much, Republicans will then say, "See, we told you gun control doesn't work," just as they've attacked the stimulus measure and health care. I'm for stronger legislation on many things, but it's not in the cards and I can jump up and down, stomp my feet, and throw a temper tantrum, but that won't change it. I have not always agreed with the President, and I and others on the progressive side have felt he hasn't pushed that agenda enough, but that's far easier for us sitting out here to complain about. I appreciate that the President has had to deal with the political reality I mentioned above every day he's been in office. 

What troubles me is, voting is not like an essentially meaningless football game,** where you just want YOUR side to win. There are issues that can have a profound effect on the nation and even the world. My father was a Republican, and he was a man who read a lot and knew issues pretty well, so that he knew what basically was a potential benefit to the nation, but in the end his highly competitive nature tended to see political matters like a football game, where egos and self esteem are illogically tied to the team of your choice, rather than to what is good for the nation. Unfortunately he cheered on the Republicans even when he felt they were wrong. This is often what politics is however, an emotional force rather than a thoughtful one.  

* Democrats have done similar, but at least here in Ohio, I've never heard such an outcry about the unfairness of the process as this last time by Republicans. The practice is called "gerrymandering."

** While a school or some players or a community may benefit from a football game (or some other sporting event), the fact is, the game isn't going to change the world. I'm not against sports, but I think we put an awful lot of value on them. On the professional side, players in the major sports make millions every year while the public pays outrageous prices to see these events, yet that same public complains about giving teachers a few hundred or a thousand dollars in a raise. Teachers and education CAN change the world. 

WORD HISTORY:
Tough-The ultimate origins of this word are unknown, but it goes back to Old Germanic, but to exactly what Old Germanic form I'm not really sure. Old English (Anglo-Saxon) had "toh," with the "h" having emphasis enough that later this produced the "gh" spelling, but which eventually came to be pronounced as if "ff." The German form also once had the more guttural ending in "zach," which has since become "zäh," obviously taking it back close to the Old English form. Dutch, another close relative of English, has "taai," Low German Saxon has "taag," Swedish has "tuffa," and Norwegian has "tøff." The meaning in Old English remains with us today as the main meaning, "something difficult to bite or to break."