{"id":15208,"date":"2025-02-12T08:01:15","date_gmt":"2025-02-12T13:01:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/?p=15208"},"modified":"2025-02-12T08:01:15","modified_gmt":"2025-02-12T13:01:15","slug":"the-impact-of-the-pendulum-swing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/?p=15208","title":{"rendered":"the impact of the pendulum swing"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Oh, how the pendulum swings\u2026 left to right\u2026 right to left\u2026 And when the pendulum swings swiftly and forcefully to a perceived extreme end, it disrupts the entire mechanism. The pendulum only rests in the middle.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019ve played with this idea for years now \u2014 how the political pendulum swings back and forth to\/fro opposite ends and examining the impact of the movement. Contributor Evan Thies from the left-leaning Daily News<\/em> articulated a similar thought recently\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe political pendulum swings predictably in our country from left to right like a metronome, marking time \u2014 but sometimes it swings much faster than others. And, when it does, the pendulum can become a scythe. We have swung from Obama\/left to Trump\/right to Biden\/left and back again in the space of eight years, and each time the pendulum has picked up speed. The acceptable rhetoric became increasingly hotter. The frustration with the system angrier. Belief in it shakier. And the shakier our belief in the system, the more emboldened people feel to topple it. We have reached another point in our history when words no longer seem to work. We are in an era of action now. But will it bring constructive disruption or destruction?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I feel like this is what we\u2019re witnessing in real time.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Clearly, Pres. Trump has benefitted from not serving in the presidency for 8 consecutive years but having served in the office already. By serving as President previously, he has an awareness of what he can do, what he cannot, and what he might<\/em> be able to do.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Clearly, too, there are polar opposite reactions to his activity. Some are deeply concerned, even fearful. Some are deeply satisfied, even gleeful. While there indeed seems a majority that lies more quietly in the middle, one of the things currently accompanying the reactions is a sharp rebuke (which varies in intensity)<\/em> of those who do not share identical perspective.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Oh, how the pendulum swings\u2026 hotter rhetoric, increased frustration and shakier belief. We hear it. We see it. We feel it now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019ve watched the variegated reaction to some of the proposed budget cuts \u2014 especially for federal employees and foreign aid \u2014 and thank you to the many who have reached out, respectfully sharing your reality in ways that are hard and in ways that are commending. It\u2019s important not to fall prey to ignoring the variance in reaction \u2014 thinking this is all good or all bad. It\u2019s indeed tricky, as it affects different people differently.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In regard to that aid, note that the U.S. government is the single largest aid donor in the world. According to the United Nations, the U.S. accounts for 40% of all<\/em> human aid. The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has been the American government\u2019s primary foreign aid agency since 1961, distributing billions of dollars annually to over 100 countries, supporting all sorts of efforts such as disaster relief, healthcare, democracy promotion and more. The categories of aid \u201ccan be somewhat opaque and the lines between them blurry,\u201d however, reports Pew Research Center in a summation released last week. Hence, it\u2019s logical that Americans would have mixed views on foreign assistance. My semi-educated guess is that those views depend on the awareness\/prioritization of three merging factors: (1) compassion for those in need in other countries, (2) unmet needs here at home, and (3) what the expenditures actually are.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reading and watching the more objective accounts as to what\u2019s included in current USAID spending (which means no ABC, CBS, CNN, FOX, MSNBC, NBC, NPR, New York Post, New York Times and more),<\/em> it\u2019s clear that there are good things included in our aid \u2014 and some that are indeed questionable. My understanding is that after the current review, the government will reimburse those programs which are approved and they will thus resume. We will be watching what this is \u2014 and what it\u2019s not.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While we attempt, no less, to avoid a reaction that blinds us to the simultaneous existence of the good, bad and questionable, we should note, too, that the U.S. has a national debt that grows by an approximate $1 trillion every 100 days. It currently increases by $6.6 billion daily.<\/em> In other words, for foreign aid, we are borrowing the money we are giving away. Let that reality not cause us to ignore merging factor #1 of compassion for those in need, but let us also acknowledge the unmet needs and what the expenditures actually are.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Blessings, friends. May we strive to respect and listen to all. May we recognize the impact of the pendulum swing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Respectfully\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

AR<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Oh, how the pendulum swings\u2026 left to right\u2026 right to left\u2026 And when the pendulum swings swiftly and forcefully to a perceived extreme end, it disrupts the entire mechanism. The pendulum only rests in the middle. I\u2019ve played with this idea for years now \u2014 how the political pendulum swings back and forth to\/fro opposite … <\/p>\n

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