In my effort to stay informed, I attended a “Candidates Night” on October 10 at Holy Cross High School to listen to the local candidates.
There were three candidates seeking a congressional seat and four others seeking seats in the NY State assembly.
I consider myself an informed and concerned citizen and was prepared to hear a discussion about the absence of a federal budget for four years, uncontrolled entitlement spending, the unaccountable Federal Reserve, the impending bankruptcy of Social Security, the impending tax increases, imperiled pension obligations, countless regulatory agencies with myriad counterproductive restrictions and regulations, etc. I was curious to hear their solutions on how we may avoid or mitigate the inevitable “crash” as we approach the “fiscal cliff” everyone is prognosticating.
To my dismay, it seemed as if I were in a parallel universe with a different reality, where loiterers on Northern Boulevard, noise from aircraft and a procedure for extracting gas are the major threats to our lives and economy. Only one candidate attempted to address the inevitable fiscal calamity but was unable to elaborate due to time constraints.
Most elections do not effectuate change, but serve to legitimize and reinforce the status quo, since 85 percent of incumbents are returned to office. Most of the candidates subscribe to the fashionable view that government knows best and is responsible for our welfare. Their aim is to lull us into a false sense of security, encourage us to follow along with the crowd and shirk personal responsibility. What is most discouraging is that most candidates as well as voters do not understand the issues that affect our economy. Perhaps that is why they were never addressed.
There is no doubt we have met the enemy: it is us.
Ed Konecnik
Flushing
