At noon on Jan. 20, the United States will see the swearing in of its 46th president since the founding of the republic. The president-elect has already signaled the direction he wishes to move the country by naming people for senior positions who are clearly qualified for the jobs as opposed to naming those who have personal loyalty to him.
Does this mean I can finally wake up from the nightmare that’s been the past four years? Well, only time will tell. On the one hand, some of the signs look promising. For a change, people familiar with how government’s supposed to work, and who have long experience in their fields, are being named to senior positions. That’s a good sign. But every coin has two sides.
Political pushback started before inauguration and official nomination of even a single individual. The opposition from the party that lost the White House is not surprising. That seems to be the rule not the exception over the past decade as politics in America have become as divisive as they were during the period in the 1800s leading up to the Civil War—and, I’m not predicting a Civil War, so calm down.
I’m just stating an inescapable fact. What’s even more worrying, though, is the divisions and pushback from within the winning party, as some argue for even more concessions for their points of view. Putting narrow agendas before the overall good of the country is not a good thing.
Most of the things they ask for are worthwhile, but in their zeal to push their narrow interests, some seem to forget that Rome wasn’t built in a day. There’s a Spanish expression, poco a poco, avanzamos, meaning, ‘little by little, we move ahead.’
When I was in the army, many eons ago, I was taught that the key to making progress was to do the most important things first and work your way down the list of priorities. Right now, the most important priorities are to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic, rebuild the economy better, address issues of racial justice, address climate change, restore the faith of the people in governmental institutions, and restore the country’s place in the world.
Until we make progress on these issues, it will be hard to even think about other things. Even the important aforementioned priorities will require time to achieve. Racial justice and climate change, for example, will require changes in the way people think, currently very much based upon their political beliefs. Changing peoples’ minds does not happen overnight.
In my view, the way to make progress is to make sure those we put in positions of power and decision making are competent. We should strive for diversity, and that seems to be happening, but competence should be the driving factor.
I’m a perpetual optimist, always looking for the bright side of a tarnished coin. If enough people, especially those people sitting in positions to really make things happen, agree with me, the nightmare can finally come to an end.
One can only hope that on January 21st, they will wake up determined to do what’s right for a change, and put partisan bickering aside for the good, not just of the citizens of our country, but for all the people in the world who have long looked to the United States as the beacon of hope for all who ‘yearn to be free.’
I’m not giving up hope, but I am keeping my fingers crossed. – NWI
