Slave to the Grind?

I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving Day and Weekend! How many took time to be thankful? And were you more thankful for people or for things? And how many are just glad for the good feed and bad football? Personally, I belong in all of the categories above.

But now it's Monday, and back to the grind.

And back to the chalkboard for the automakers. The news tells us that Congress sent the automakers packing until they came up with a more comprehensive business plan for their future. It appears that our government suddenly became concerned about spending our money...Seems odd to me.

This is the same group of people who pushed for and approved the trillion plus dollar bailout of the financial sector, or whatever sector they plan on "helping". Even though the majority, and I mean majority literally according to all polls that I read, of Americans were against it. I guess they were so overwrought with concern that they ignored their duties to represent the people, and instead decide to do for us what we didn't have enough intelligence or insight to do for ourselves. That and appropriate a couple of billion in pork...And look at how well it has worked out for the economy so far.

But rejoice and dance in the streets because Congress has now found new fiscal responsibility! Or ran out of pork this week.

Does anyone else think that something is rotten in the state of Denmark beside the cheese?

Color me jaded, but this smells of power games and masquerades by the inept and milquetoast. See Pelosi and Reid for pictorial effect.

Don't get me wrong, I'm against another bailout or a loan that can never be repaid. But I am not naive enough, nor do I trust our current government enough to think that we are stepping in the right direction by following their lead. I would love to be proved wrong; hoping to be proved incorrect in my assumptions. But I am afraid that we are probably just stepping in it.

To fix our current financial and economic problems, we are going to have to get back to philosophies and forget numbers and algorhithmns. Many companies need to restructure, not take money so that they can continue down the present road of failure that they are already traveling. The private sector will need to make sacrifices. If the government feels the need to play the role of nursemaid, then it needs to supply some tough love. Outdated Unions, like the UAW, need to go the way of the buffalo. Everyone, and I do mean everyone, needs to stop being so reliant on the stock market to tell us how and what we are, will, and should do with our money. The stock market is as frail as a one hundred and twenty year old woman in a train wreck. Our strength is in our individual decisions, work ethics, and our resilience. Not in a market that can bottom out because of news that it snowed in Africa or can skyrocket because of news that the Jackson Five is planning a reunion tour. Maybe I'm exaggerating, but not by much. Anyway, you get the picture.

And I'm not how reading this will help ease anyone back into the grind, so to speak. But maybe, just maybe, we can begin to think in manners of philosophies. Maybe we can start a revolution of thoughts and ideas; a revolution that begins in each of us and begins to permeate our workplaces and our frequent haunts. Maybe our revolution will help restore ethics and pride. Maybe determination, sacrifice, and tough decision making could be good for us and our nation. Maybe we can inspire our government, or at least hold them accountable.

Or maybe it's just another Monday, another day to get back to the grind.

The decision is solely and wholly yours to make.

But remember the chorus from a song by the deep, intellectual rock band, Skid Row: "Can't be king of the world, if your a slave to the grind."