I have been reading and doing research on communes (I think I am more of a hermit) and came across the idea of "communism" versus socialism -> oligarchy. The United States has long had the idea that we are the premier democracy in the world. Truth is, we are really nothing more than an oligarchy that has an elected dictator that rotates every 4 years. Think about it. The Congress has 535 members, most of which have been there for years running unchallenged or challenged but seriously overspending their challenger. Think of Congress as the elite upper-class (they are actually-more than 50% are worth more than $1million [http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/10/us/politics/more-than-half-the-members-of-congress-are-millionaires-analysis-finds.html?_r=0] ) who are critically out of touch with their constituencies. Think of the President as the elected dictator as he has as much power as all of congress, though in different ways. The president can veto a law and make an executive order, while congress can pass a law, override a veto, and make a statement by doing nothing. Effectively, we are an elected oligarchy. So, seeing that we have this issue, how do we fix it?
If one were to really look at the Constitution, they would see that congress was not intended to be a lifetime career. It was considered a civic duty. Over time, congress has modified this intention into the mess it is today. Many have served more than 50 years in congress. This is too long. The problem is that in the last 25 or so years, technology has created a differential in the populace. There has been a dramatic shift in cultural identity in that time that honestly changes the way things should be done.
I watched a recording of the SOTU that aired last night. I am feeling particularly energized by POTUS and feel that the Congress needs to listen up. Sure, there have been mistakes made...but POTUS has reached across the aisle again to say "let's work together". Despite that hand across the aisle, I have a feeling that Congress will try to push their way through to try to invalidate the work done, but will ultimately fail. POTUS has vowed to use the VETO to block any back pedaling attempted by Congress. All we need to do now is to get out and vote in 2016 and show Congress that a government by the people, for the people means that we call the shots...
