So What Does American Greatness Look Like From Your Perspective?

Gaining Personal Perspective

Disclaimer: These answers are different for each of us, and these words might make some of us uncomfortable. At Our Raw Material we call this Wholeness. Wecome to the discussion.

When we enjoy what we are hearing, it’s easier to pay attention to what is being said. Likewise, listening to things we don’t like generally creates more of a challenge – especially when it comes to politics. By adulthood, our belief systems are hard-wired with personal biases, which have become energetic speed bumps around our ability to suffer opposing perspectives. We get stuck in our self-righteousness, while denying our organic fallibility. I think we can all agree that Trump and Musk appear to be very passionate in their ongoing approach to greatness. Even their given names suggest a universal nod to these endeavors, don’t they? Still, an inherent fact remains: we don’t all walk in full maga faith here. So how do we affect our political discourse so that it can effectively serve our growing differences? 

There are a little over 304 million people living in the US as of 2024. For argument’s sake, let’s say we have a 70/30 split agreement about everything. Regardless of the issue before us, exactly 100% of us would benefit from allowing that 30% of dissenting opinions to be considered in the conversation (briefly and actively). That doesn’t mean they get their way, but it does provide a platform for genuine acknowledgement of their reasoning. Plus, it increases the power of our own knowledge at the same time. In true listening, we can learn to adapt to things we don’t like. When we remain stuck without a voice, we are more prone to letting our fears run the show. We might even start thinking we are living a nightmare! So let’s breathe deeply, and try taking in this crucial slice of reality: certain people feel incredibly safe in the very same conditions that terrify others – and vice versa. #vantagetruth

In a system where majority rules (or representation of majority, if we must get technical), we have never reached a common sense consensus on what to do with the opinions of those in the minority (the remaining 30%). For those of you who need math help like me, that means there are still over 102 million people who disagree in some way. Lately, we’ve walled them all together with sound bites and memes that serve to discredit their opinions. We have synthesized 102 million unique voices into one single note, as if they are an annoying fly circling the room with incessant buzzing. We only care to make it stop bothering us. “They” (whoever that means) become less and less human to us over time because we habitually tune out the parts we don’t want to hear and/or don’t agree with. 

The tables have tilted from democrat to republican 9 times since I was born in 1968. 

It’s no wonder I cling to the middle, perplexed by the unbridled fear lashing at both ends. I don’t support the mucky, inflated outrage at either extreme. I know it only fuels our separation. Instead, I seek to help us remember how to best represent ourselves, in consideration of the harm we might do, direct or incidental. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: I’m all for draining the swamp, but we must also recognize that we are each standing in it, to some degree. Hard truth, but stay with me for my broader opinion on it:

The wars we think we are waging are a culminating effect of the energetic struggle that we find ourselves facing as a species. Our human brains make patterned deviations from Earth’s natural order in a way that nothing else can (that we know of). When we began to explain nature intellectually, we chose to devalue the mind/body attunement we were offered for understanding. Which means that unless we make a concerted effort to tune into an uplifting vibration, we wind up feeling surrounded by the very loud chaos that our differing opinions create. 

I truly believe that vibration is among our greatest resources. A sea of turbulence can look dark and scary, but for those who learn to surf, it is a ritualistic way to live. Surfers wake up and respond to the calling of ongoing waves, day after day, knowing there is beauty in the balance of nature’s ups and downs. This includes a resounding joy that far exceeds what we have come to expect from life in general. Human beings are nature’s aberrance, and resolving our disconnection is our ultimate challenge. We probably aren’t ready for it yet.

Over time, political allegiances have compromised our ability to hear each other, recognize our own ignorance, or remember that our only true common sense is found in our energetic connection to each other. Our thoughts naturally pull us apart because we each reason from a different value system. Proof has become our personal propaganda as Republicans seek to adopt the concept of common sense for themselves, and Democrats seem suspended in a state of stunned reticence, unable to move the needle forward into breathable allowance. Thomas Paine’s Common Sense was, among other things, an unheeded warning. Caring for the common among us was consumed by shadow greed a long time ago. Occasionally, it makes a soulful push for a comeback – but when the best cards we hold are sympathy and benevolence, it’s hard to be invited or included in the negotiations. 

Simplification is the easiest way to untangle the mess of ego energies that have strangled our collective ability to breathe freely in the land of the free. And while I agree in general principle with this Administration’s interest in realigning our insane balance sheet (their words), I am failing to find confidence in their wildly slashy methods.That doesn’t make me right or them wrong. It is simply a mark of division for the level and type of clarity and transparency we each seek. I am not implying that both of these things aren't of value to everyone – I’m saying that the degree of importance varies greatly. And it’s a good time to remind us that America, as a part of its origins, invited us all to be exactly who we are, bravely. We have become intolerant; finding others unacceptable for whatever reason… So considering my best solution:

Perhaps we could hear directly from President Trump (and some AI skills) about where/how he sees the world in two years? Five? Ten? I simply want to know some of the specifics of his vision so that we can all calm down enough to listen. Don’t we all, given the option? Artificial Intelligence has proven that it can give us the general backdrop of what he wants, and then he can actually flesh it out for us – beyond his bizarre suggestion that every single person will be existentially happy in Trump Gaza. We all know that’s not happening in the next 10 years unless we somehow change physical form, right? Let’s go on record that I’m not ruling anything out, or deciding exactly how I’ll feel about something before I experience it, but solid intel is always helpful to the cause. I will have opinions, of course, but I don’t care what that looks like as much as I care to have a little more depth in his answers, opinions, and solutions.

So DJT, what will it be? Nobel prize or booby prize? Putin Whisperer or Putin Wannabe? Friend of women or female foe? The answer to these questions lie in the conflicting opinions of human beings, in reaction to the conflicting things Trump says and does. While we are arguing about which side knows his real intentions, do we ever stop to wonder if he, himself, has a clear picture of what he really means, or thinks, or wants? I’ve been married to two geminis and I can report that direction can change with the wind. True story. 

So maybe we are all right some of the time? Trump is both a lover and a hater (his words again). And arguably the biggest symbol of ego excess that our country has ever produced – to my knowledge, anyway – I don’t claim to know it all, at all. That said, he’s holding some power. Right now, he is flexing it in all directions while expanding his own horizons on what he believes is possible. His manifesting game is strangely solid, so be prepared for the plans to change as he develops them in real, reactive time. It’s where he is confident he does his best work.

Elon is the one confusing me at this stage, although I’ve seen a tiny crack in his emotional resolve the past couple days. The raw musking seems unnecessarily painful, even to him. The integrity of his virgo moon, along with the collective consideration of his cancer sun are helping him accomplish this task methodically. Unlike Trump, If he could do it while also empathizing with the people whose lives are being flipped around, he would gain much more support, which would honestly make him feel good and want to keep helping. It could also serve the healing we need for our country if we want to prove the ongoing survival of our very first governing decision - to be a Democracy. Are we all for one? One for all? Together? Separate? Depends who you ask. As we question what our forefathers meant by their words, my hope is that we focus a little more on the word United. Meaning: to come or bring together for common purpose or action. We’re dabbling with a real shift in world order. To what degree does that grab your attention?