While news analysts focus on all the bad news from the nation's capital, the latest economic reports seem to indicate that a growing percentage of us are choosing to just ignore Washington. We are getting on with our lives, our businesses, our careers, our family life and seem to be increasingly looking at the news out of Washington as just a weather report. The incompetence, blaming, partisanship and stubbornness are just descriptions of severe weather, another storm which we will muddle through taking appropriate precautions to protect ourselves from Washington.
Of all the titles that we give our leaders, I cannot recall anyone using the word pastor or shepherd. Imagine calling national leaders shepherds. Jesus was pleased to be called the Great Shepherd and was saddened by large crowds who were like sheep without a shepherd (Mark 6:30-34, 53-56). What would politics be like if our leaders were more like caring shepherds? Would they rob mom and pop tax payers of their modest incomes by stealing from them grossly excessive taxes? Would they feed their flocks crumbs while they dined opulently and sacrifice them all just for greed? Or, would they be selfless shepherds like Jesus Christ, the Great Shepherd and king of the universe, and be willing to suffer so that others may live?
It's a shame that Washington is seen in such negative light. The leaders of the people are supposed to be shepherds caring for their flock, but politics is more about being a wolf to feed on the flock it seems. So, what do we do with a wolf? The wealthy gather armies of lawyers and accountants. The rest of us, just try to keep our heads low, so as not to cross the erratic behavior of our overlords.
So, what do we do? We hear the weather report, another storm coming from Washington. An ever increasing burden placed upon the people in paperwork, taxes and slavery to the oligarchy. We don our weather-protective gear, batten down the hatches and get on with life. Once the preparation for the next storm is done, we basically just ignore Washington. They can't or won't help us. We can only help ourselves.
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