What happened is that American politicians turned our government into a fast track to wealth. I'm still trying to figure out how a governor, who makes $104,000 per year, is able to retire a multi-millionaire after only eight years in office. When it comes to basic math, I can hold my own, but I just can't seem to find the right operators to make this come out right.

A contributing factor to this never-ending tax roster is the fact that government agencies, whether state or federal, are not allowed to build surplus revenues. If they have $400,000.00 left over at the end of the fiscal year, their current-year budget is cut by an equal or greater amount. As a result, they're forced to spend any leftover monies, on anything and everything, before the books close in October. It was this mentality that led to the Pork Barrel scandal in the 1980's, which revealed that government agencies (and branches of the military) were buying $700 hammers and $800 toilet seats in order to justify their budgets. Unfortunately, the scandal didn't put an end to the wasteful and rampant spending that continues today.

The current two-party system has run its course. The United States Government is now a business, and the product it sells is the next open seat. The successful candidate who fills that seat will be committed, not to the people he represents, but to the party that endorsed his campaign and blessed him with their nomination. As soon as his butt hits the chair, his job is NOT to take on the issues that concern the constituents who elected him, but to win the next election, and the best way to do that is to spend lots and lots of money. Build a convention center and slap his name on it; form a committee, bearing his name, to investigate something benign and, at its conclusion, issue a report that contains the word, "inconclusive" several times; find a construction project funded at $35M in another state, and offer to pay $200M of HIS constituents' tax dollars to "offset" the other state's cost.

Today's elections aren't about doing a good job for four years. Now, elections are about getting re-elected; one seeks office for the sake of HAVING the job, not for the sake of DOING it to the best of one's ability. "Elected Official" is one of only two professions where job performance matters very little, the other being a meteorologist. How well one does that job won't affect his ability to keep it.

The politicians have it made, so they're not going to change things to their own detriment in order to benefit us, and why should they? This is our problem, and it's up to us to fix it.

As always your comments are very well thought out and hit the bullseye!! Many thanks!!