Crossroads

Countless more learned, wise, and insightful individuals have commented mightily on the words and actions of our current President.  Some of these individuals, plus countless more, have commented mightily upon  the words and actions of our current Congress.  Another large group has commented mightily upon the words and actions of our current media: mainstream, cable, and other forms.

From across these commentaries have come the pithy, relevant, absurd, indefensible, radical, partisan, liberal, conservative, ridiculous, frightening, accurate, ignorant, pointed, superb, false, misleading, irrelevant, humorous, spiteful, inflammatory, racial, ridiculous, earnest, and thought provoking.  Such is the wonder of free speech, arguably the cornerstone of democracy.

Tonight, we are told, POTUS will announce unilateral action regarding illegal immigration.  Said announced action, delayed at the reported behest of Democrats for political reasons prior to the midterm election; earlier denounced by POTUS; and subject to differing pieces of legislation, brings the nation to a crossroads.

Regardless of one's views on immigration policy, despite one's political leanings, no matter one's view of this POTUS, everyone should view with great concern the crossroads to which he is taking the nation.  Behind the words he will utter tonight, which (by the way) the three main TV giants (ABC, CBS, and NBC) are refusing to show, is something so very serious that thinking and concerned citizens from all demographics, all sectors of society should be afraid.

Despite the strong divisions in our nation, on almost every and all subjects, our country remains strong because of our form of democracy.  It is good, in many ways, that one political party or another doesn't hold total control.  The tension should drive our lawmakers, at every level of government, towards the necessity of compromise.  Through compromise, extremism is limited.  Through compromise, the best of opposing views can be welded together.  Through compromise, democracy remains strong.

Over a number of years, the nation has travelled down a dangerous road.  Thus, compromise has slipped further and further away.  Of recent, legislative maneuverings by a handful of individuals have prevented votes that would drive opposing views towards the conference table for compromise.  One political party solely passed a major, now seen as dubious, piece of legislation.  The other political party took action contributing to it being perceived as having shut down the government.  Traveling this dangerous road, further and further from compromise, has on the surface been terribly unwise.  The aforementioned commentary has played to one side or another of the issues encountered on this road.

We now come to crossroads.  By undertaking the unilateral action this evening, POTUS is turning and taking the nation down a much, much more dangerous road.  Compromise cannot be reached by this road.  Cementing divisiveness and forsaking compromise, if unchallenged and left standing, the precedence set by POTUS unilateral action means the nation has been knowingly reduced to the level of a "banana republic," in which the incumbent declares laws, and enforcement of them, to his liking, the people be damned.

At this crossroads, I can only hope commentators across the spectrum see the danger and demand review and action to turn the nation around, away from the crossroads, and back down the road leading to compromise.