Aside from all of the major divisions in this country on issues both current (Edward Snowden and the NSA, Syria, the Sequester) and long standing (social issues, state's rights, racial issues), one of the major things that continues to come up is the division between the political parties and within the political parties as well as the direction the country is going in. 60% of Americans think the country is on the wrong course; the President's approval rating has dipped below 50% for the first time since last year while Congress' approval rating is up from an all time low at 21% (which is the highest it has been in the last 2 years). Shockingly, these are down from all time lows in 2008 where 90% of people thought the country was on the wrong track, only 22% approved of the president, and 9% approved of Congress' job.
Barring any sort of political discussion about who was running what, those kind of numbers don't reflect political affiliation but deep seated disapproval from the general population. While the reasons why people disapprove may be different, the American people have spoken out: this country is on the wrong track, going the wrong way. Is it any wonder why people have difficulty accepting the same party lines we've heard for years regarding the economy? We don't trust the people in office to give us the correct information and we don't trust them to take the well being of the states, let alone the entire country, into consideration. Only 21% of people in a recent study claimed the political affiliation Republican while 31% claim Democrat. For the last four years, 37% of the polled claimed no political affiliation - a clear indicator that those guiding this country are not representing the will of the people.
We hear about the economic stresses being exerted on countries like Greece or Spain, where unemployment climbs toward Great Depression levels, but we're fed numbers like 7.6% unemployment when the real number is closer to 14.3%: a number which includes people who have been forced to take part-time or underqualified work (underemployment) or people who have been looking for work so long they don't qualify to be a part of the workforce anymore (long term unemployment). If the American public was told that almost 15% of the population, approximately 44.7 million people, were in dire straits and that very little was being done to relieve the pressure - if that was tonight's major headline, coverage of the royal baby, Edward Snowden, Syria, and George Zimmerman would stop on a dime because the major news would be the riots and protesting done at capitol buildings.
So what can be done? Both sides of the political spectrum need to remove their extremist elements and get back to core American ideals and beliefs. Money needs to be removed from the political process: not just from the campaigning, but also from the endless benefits that the judiciary, the legislature, and the executive branch enjoy. There needs to be a real, total audit of the American government to see what we're spending and where - and if it makes sense, keep it. If it doesn't make sense or it could be done better, toss it. We send billions of dollars in foreign aid overseas, while we create laws preventing businesses from being successful here. We're building bridges in Africa while the roads in America are falling apart - I'd much prefer that if I had to give tax dollars to the government that I could at least point to where the money was going and see some benefit to the American people.
Even further, there needs to be a serious discussion about finance and investment with the American population. A real asset or investment is going to make you money. Gold purchases made at the turn of the century made almost 5 times the money back at their peak. Silver purchases made during that same time period would have done almost 10 times the return. Rare coins would have seen an even higher rate of return over the same period. If we as Americans are going to get back to the idea of independence and self-reliance, we can't keep looking to the same old investment vehicles that are offering paltry returns. A diversified portfolio of rare coins, precious metals, and collectibles is a smart first step into protecting your wealth from a government that doesn't know how to manage the money it has already been given.
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