I guess it's official...

...that I am what's known as an "Old Fart." I wanted to avoid being slapped with that label, but what the hell...it fits.

I've been listening to all the babble from politicians recently (it's unavoidable), and it's really bringing me down. Barack Obama's running for president and there is no way in hell I would want to live in a country he presided over. Lest you think me racist, it's his wacko-lefty ideas (those few that are publicly known, since his career as a national office holder is so short) that disqualify him for me. Neither would I care to live in a country run by Hillary Whatever-the-pollsters-tell-her-to-use-for-a-last-name. Johns Kerry or Edwards? I'd sooner vote for Hugo Chavez. At least he's openly a socialist dictator.

That doesn't mean I see any Republicans worth heading to the voting booth for. I used to like John McCain, until he bent over for the illegals. Besides, I'm not sure all of his beliefs are so strongly rooted. The others? Sam (who?) Brownback, who sounds like another far-right loon? Other guys I've never heard of? Fuggeddaboutit.

The most distressing thing, at least to me, is this: previous generations (mainly the couple before mine) accomplished a hell of a lot. Among other things, they:

-- fought, and won a World War, and then rebuilt Europe and Japan;
-- built an interstate highway system;
-- made this country an industrial powerhouse;
-- had an economy that didn't require families to have both parents working just to stay afloat;
-- stared down Nikita the K, and eventually broke the back of the Red Menace;
-- went into space.

Don't bug me about the bad stuff, like racism. It was there, but an earlier end to it wouldn't have changed the very real accomplishments of those generations, would in fact have made things damn near perfect.

And what do the halfwits, shitweasels and various kinds of crooks in D. C. today have to show for themselves?

-- George Bush has sold us out to his Mexican pals;
-- George Bush has screwed up in the Middle East, big-time;
-- George Bush is about to propose a ludicrous "health-care" plan that will punish those fortunate enough to have it now, and do damn little for those who don't;
-- all the Democrats can say about the Middle East is: "Run!" which accomplishes nothing;
-- the Democrats' "health-care" ideas are socialist nightmares of government-run Robin Hood-ism;
-- both parties rant about "values" in their own ways, and whichever side wins will heavy-handedly impose their beliefs on everyone;
-- no one comes up with ideas and possible solutions to anything. Instead, they howl about the other sides' inept actions.

To sum it up: everyone in Washington today is so concerned about protecting their own turf that anything beneficial they do is strictly accidental. And all are so busy sucking up to their fatcat friends and preparing for the next election that they cannot manage to focus on anything but the issues that crop up each second.

The Brits have an old saying which goes, roughly, like this: "He who takes the Queen's shilling does the Queen's business." Or, as a well-known performer from the 1930s* once said, "he whose bread I eat, his songs I sing." Politicans, clearly, live in a world where this sage advice can be ignored.

Obviously, life was not ideal for previous generations. Nor were politicians of those days anything like selfless saints. But somehow they managed to tackle some major challenges without bleeding us dry, threatening the survival of our industrial base, wiping out Americans' jobs or opening the borders to a horde of illegals.

Of course the citizens were different then, as well. Even after FDR's best efforts to make them dependent on -- and beholden to -- his socialist nanny-state, most Americans still took pride in standing on their own two feet.

Not so today. Between LBJ, Jimmuh Carter, Bubba Clinton and the current crop of Democrat welfare-staters (and Bush seems to want, in the twilight of his political career, to emulate them), we have an ever-growing population that could not survive without government handouts. We have professional victims and protected classes, all fed from the tax trough.

God knows how these useless elected goons would deal with a real crisis. They -- president and congress alike -- totally blew the response to 9/11. An actual war would probably see our "leaders" running to the UN for "guidance," right before surrendering.

I believe we should deal with our own problems first, make sure our own people are comfortable, and do so with minimal governmental involvement. I believe we can and should tackle the major issues of the day, even though there is little political gain in doing so properly. I believe we should help our friends around the world, and stomp the daylights out of our enemies.

And I believe every politician in Washington should be removed from office and sent out to pick lettuce. I have no doubt there are plenty of good people who would serve us if given a chance.

Old-fashioned notions, each and every one.

All of which makes me an Old Fart.


* it might have been Al Jolson; I don't remember for sure.