We seldom enjoy waiting. We never enjoy economic pain. Waiting feels passive, like something is being done to us, and when that waiting is paired with higher prices at the grocery store, at the gas pump, and in the monthly bills, it wears people down. Most folks will be patient if they can see where things are headed, but patience gets thin when every trip to the store costs more than the last one.
It seems like we have two separate governments making the rules in our country today. One is in Washington, DC. That’s the federal government, and right now it seems to be working on big, distant issues that people aren’t able to touch, see, or experience in their daily lives. The work may be important for the long run, trade, borders, foreign affairs, restructuring how the economy works, but it doesn’t feel immediate when you are trying to make ends meet this week.
Then there’s the other government. The one that is out there promising “the people” free rent, free groceries, free transportation. Have they received any of that? Not that I know of. But these people still feel the hope of free stuff, and that hope is powerful. It keeps them listening and waiting. I think they will be disappointed, because promises are easy to make and very hard to pay for, and when the free things don’t show up, the disappointment will land on the same people who can least afford it.
That is why the DC government needs to show the people what it’s actually doing. It can’t just talk about plans and policies for the future. It needs to connect the work to things people can feel right now, lower costs, more stability, a sense that things are getting better on the ground. If people can see and touch the results, they might be more willing to wait a little longer. May God help us all.
“The American people demand results, not rhetoric, especially when it comes to national security issues.” – J.D. Hayworth
Being About The Journey 