And the pendulum swings

Over some homemade peach pie, my father and I were recently discussing 'what's wrong with America.' (Light topics over the holidays at my house.) My father is concerned with the cultural gaps, and lack of common culture for younger Americans. See this NPR story, which explains the side effects of mass media. If there is SO much media available from so many sources, all the time, how can any generation share common knowledge and references? The grim reality of these implications is hammered home in this short video by Kansas State students, showing the massive differences in communication and education between 'the millennials' and older generations.

I think this is certainly a cause for concern, especially as it applies to professional communication standards. Inter-generational differences are acceptable in most forums, but in business settings, the same standards apply to all people, regardless of age. Check your email. Read the whole thing. Reply carefully, in a timely and professional manner. Multi-tasking shows lack of interest. Arrive on time, and concentrate on the task at hand. As long as everyone is held to the same business standards, I believe that outside of work, cultural differences can have minimal consequences.

To counter my father's opinion, my greatest concern is the two-party, donation based political structure in the United States. I think we should abolish party donations, and make politicians work for something besides donor dollars. This would completely change the game for interest representation, lobbyists, and general inefficiencies.

Once political donations are outlawed, there would be a fighting chance for another political party in the United States. I detest the stronghold and constant bickering of the two-party, Us vs. Them. It causes severe clashes between the two parties, and creates this pendulum effect after each election. (See today's EPA smog standards update) Little new legislation can be created, because we're working so hard to change back everything that predecessors just changed two or four years ago. If just one other party existed, with substantial share in the system, suddenly NO party would have over 50% majority. For every single bill and policy, parties would constantly be forced to work together on their initiatives, instead of bullying their way to passing bills. As parties are forced to work together instead of constantly fighting, they will discover the large amounts of commonalities they share. They can use these commonalities, which are also present in the general population, to create substantial and meaningful legislation that would not simply be altered into obsoleteness in four years. Now, I do vote for one of the two major parties currently, but I'm anxiously awaiting a time when I have a third (or even fourth!) viable alternative.

What an effective use of a slice of peach pie.