Opening Salvo....

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When I first started thinking about doing a political themed blog (ATTENTION: I do also have a blog that is related to my business and the two do not mix) I wrestled with a name that expresses my disillusion with the current political environment. In the movie Black Hawk Down, BG Garrison utters, “We just lost the initiative” when the first Uh-60 Black Hawk helicopter is shot down in the middle of Mogadishu, Somalia.

To me BG Garrison's frustrated statement, is perfect to define what is happening in Washington, DC. As a political moderate/centrist, I see any opportunity to make any real headway in getting the country moving again to be lost. And who is to blame for this environment?
  • The media that speaks to certain segments of the political landscape, thus creating an echo chamber?
  • The hardline left and right wingers who are more inclined to ensure ideological purity instead of governance?
  •  A political system that rewards incumbents by rigging elections (yes, I said it) through gerrymandering electoral districts?
  • Political consultants who drive candidates to look strictly at polling data which over emphasizes the extreme wings of the political landscape?
There is plenty of possible scapegoats but my contention is we should blame ourselves, the moderates the centrists. We have been silent for too long and willing to accept the status quo. Instead, we need to be political Jedi Knights (yes, I am going to mix movie references so get used to it), leading the Rebellion against the Imperial overlords.

So buckle up, it is time to parachute in and take on the established political thinking.

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