A Word of Advice

The Republicans have lost another presidential election and, if they hope to ever win another one, they need to move into the 21st century. That doesn't mean they need to adopt the Democrats' platform.  But it does mean they need to recognize that the times, the world, and our country have all changed. The Democratic Party may be stuck in the 1960s, but the GOP is stuck in the 1890s. And the future does not belong to either era.

Republicans need to recognize that we are dealing now with a world economy and that, in order to prosper in that economy, we need to have world class education and infrastructure.  That means we need to have a highway system - both concrete and informational - that is second to none.  We also need to revolutionize our aging electrical grid and pour some serious thought, energy, time and money into our educational system.  In other words, we need to recognize that such things will matter in both our country's present and future and that updating such things will require an active role for government.

Lastly, the Republicans need to openly work for a balanced federal budget and begin to work on paying off our $16 trillion debt.  That can realistically only be accomplished with a combination of spending cuts and increased taxes. I personally would recommend a return to Clinton-era tax rates.

The Republicans are often on solid ground when facing the challenges of this new world-economy era. They certainly are being realistic when they advocate a repudiation of affirmative action quotas and an insistence on admitting, hiring and/or promoting the best qualified person regardless of gender and/or race.  Such a stance can only make us more competitive in a world market.  Now the GOP just needs to use such clear thinking in regards to infrastructure, education and balanced budgets.