Steven Kaplan

10/2614

A grand divide

In a time of great uncertainties when unity is at its utmost importance it appears the same old issues continues to divide the two ruling parties in Congress. When President Obama made his second inaugural address, he spoke of how while the Declaration of Independence asserted that all men were created equal we continue a never-ending journey to bridge the meaning of those words with the realities of our time. For history tells us that while these truths may be self-evident, theyve never been self-executing; that while freedom is a gift from God, it must be secured by His people here on Earth. Yet as the country struggles with the continuing burdens of a sluggish economic recovery and the difficulties of controversial military actions abroad many are questioning if people have any intention of securing those supposedly self-evident truths. As it currently stands the left and right wings in this country continue to be divided over many of the same issues they were in the presidents first term. The Affordable Care Act, issues on abortion and contraception, gay marriage, and many, many more have been argued over again and again with seemingly no resolution to said controversies in sight. Compounding these problems the newer issues of the Ebola outbreaks, ISIL, and others have resulted in a government which has been often chided as being completely paralyzed by inaction and strife. Progress does not compel us to settle centuries-long debates about the role of government for all time, but it does require us to act in our time. Yet as our country continues to struggle yet again and again over the same issues many in the public are questioning just when our leaders actually intend to move on.