Dream a Little Dream For Me.

Dale Volker's commercial of him walking around a picnic and shaking hands ending with the statement that he will "make you feel better" is so insulting that it makes the educated person want to head for state lines.  Is this like when we invaded Iraq the first time and George Sr. got on the 7 p.m. news and made us all "feel better" about the prime time war?  What kind of commercial has Volker put together here?  He doesn't make anyone feel better, in fact he is quite frightening in his callousness, his icy demeanor and his gritting of teeth when asked the tough questions like he's going to blow a gasket.  He strikes me as the kind of guy that's going to keel over any moment from a stroke or heart attack.  He seems bothered by public questioning, by people in general.  What is his commercial supposed to tell us?  Are the Republicans out to make us feel better about things? Is that some kind of giant inside joke? Is this like George W. recently making statements that he thinks the economy is strong and has a good foundation?  This is all propaganda to make us stop asking questions, stop thinking about our future and stop the call for accountability from our leadership.  We don't want to feel better, we want answers.  We want to know why we are struggling and no one seems too concerned about it.   Living in the second highest taxed state people are on the brink of mutiny.  Cities like Buffalo are dead, only on the upswing because real estate is still affordable.  It is one of the last bastions of affordability because of it's dead label.  This soon will pass as well.  Developers are buying and land banking properties.  Buildings sit idle with for sale signs in dirty windows for years, they aren't really for sale they are being kept for future profit.  Guys like Sam Hoyt, career politicians who make their living sniffing out the camera and not much else, have done nothing to move this city forward.  It seems the few rich families that have ruled Buffalo for years will continue to do so.  They are happy with the status quo.  These are the only constituents the politicians pay attention to.  These are the people with too much money. Jimmy Griffin ruled for years, under the guise of fighting for the little guy, through fear and apartheid style politics which successfully divided this city right down the middle. It was all fake.  They all walked away with pockets full of taxpayer's dollars.  Mistakes for which we still pay dearly for. He gave Democrats a bad name forever in this town.  Corruption, cronyism and campy chat made any educated person want to vomit. His practiced racism and absolute disregard for people of color was not only insulting, it was devastating to this city now  tries to play catch up in 21st century thinking.  It's no surprise that what goes around comes around in his rumored battle with the brain eating disease that killed him.  Not surprising as well is the blue collar mentality that he was a man of the people, who made us all feel better by telling us to go get a six pack and forget about it.  Please.  That doesn't make anyone feel better, in fact it is dismissive and demeaning.  I suppose when politicians talk down to us as if we are children it is assumed it will make us feel better, stop us from questioning their criminal behaviors and their dismissal of our intelligence.  Just like the folks in Washington D.C. don't listen to the people, it has trickled down to local politics where that has now become standard protocol.  Who cares what the constituents say, who cares what they want and who cares if we don't answer them.  A microcosm of this is the Buffalo City Schools.  Parents and people from all walks of life packed into those Board of Education Meetings time after time, demanding heads roll.  What has happened?  Absolutely nothing.  They made a scapegoat out of a Human Resources Director who was not responsible for what they pinned her for.  Something is seriously wrong here, not just in Buffalo but nationally.  We have become so accustomed to being bullied by fear and intimidation tactics that we surrender to the machine by just complaining and feeling so overwhelmed that it renders us impotent.  The facts are that this country is in big trouble.  No one is sounding the alarm in our leadership positions that has the power to motivate and empower the people of this nation.  There seems to be a powerful agenda at work, keeping the poor stupid and keeping the middle and upper classes programmed in a matrix system that keeps us all disconnected and isolated.  Racism will see a resurgence, hatred will surface in ugly ways matriculating down through the system in increased crime and violence everywhere.  People are discontented.  We don't want to feel better and talk to someone like Dale Volker at a picnic.  What we want is accountability, an end to lies and fabrications and to be taken into account when decisions are made.  Keep dreaming.