“Finding The Real Thing”

"Finding The Real Thing"

Finding the “Real Thing”

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By Sarah Steelman, former Missouri State Treasurer

Coke used to have a commercial differentiating its taste from Pepsi by calling itself – “the Real Thing.”  Unfortunately, when I watch today’s critical debates over public policy I rarely, if ever, see “the Real Thing.” And I don’t think it is just me feeling this way.  More and more I hear my friends and neighbors complaining about how plastic Washington politicians appear as they bombard us with rhetoric from a set of narrow talking points, completely unwilling to set aside political differences to try and solve problems. The real crisis I see is not in health care or carbon emissions, but it is the collapsing confidence the public has in our government’s institutions.

We are living in a society where image is everything and perception is reality.  I just finished the book “Where Men Win Glory,” by Jon Krakauer. This is a story about a true American hero, Pat Tillman. Krakauer traces every error in judgment, mistake and incident that resulted in Tillman’s tragic death at the hands of friendly fire. He also documents how the military hierarchy covered, lied and manufactured a story about Pat Tillman to ease their conscience, benefit their cause and further perpetuate their myths about the glories of war.   Pat Tillman was a true American hero because he did not believe a person’s value came from the position you hold, or because you are famous. His intrinsic value came from his soul, his purpose here on Earth and his willingness to forgo the fame and fortune of his professional football career to do his duty to his country. In fact, when offered the chance to get out of the Army halfway through his service and go home and play for the Cardinals, he turned it down without fanfare, and honored his commitment. Krakauer reveals the nature of Tillman’s character as a disciplined seeker of truth and knowledge, one who wasn’t afraid of working hard or taking risks.

In essence, this is what is wrong with our leaders today on both sides of the aisle. Far too often, fame, fortune and spin are what work in today’s political world. That may sound harsh, but the truth is a stubborn thing. Let’s get to the bottom of what has caused the American public to lose faith in our leaders, our institutions and our ability to deal with issues and problems using straight-forward common sense consistent with our constitution.

Our economy was brought to a complete standstill just a year ago because of valueless paper investments causing investors to lose faith and trust in the capital markets. The government responded by bailing them out, underscoring the fact that substance, or doing it right, wasn’t as important as acting like they were saving the financial world.  And now, a year later, unemployment is at 10 percent, retirees have lost half the value of their retirement funds and the fat cats on Wall Street who are responsible for the demise of our economy are still capitalizing on taxpayers. To this day no one has been held accountable for the failures in that system. There have been no consequences to the wrongdoers.

Passing the health care reform bill has become more important than the goals and outcomes of the bill itself, as is evidenced by the pundits who believe we have to have “reform” – any legislation at any cost. The problem with health care is the high cost of insuring one’s family or providing insurance for employees. The current form of each health care bill does not bring costs down, but instead makes it more expensive because of additional taxes.

Cap and trade pretends to be a better way of reducing carbon gas when in fact it is a way for corporations to profit from buying and selling allowances while still continuing to pollute.

President Obama receives the prestigious Nobel Peace Prize before he completes the first year of his presidency. That’s kind of like getting a super bowl ring before you play the game. He may earn it, but right now there is still war in Afghanistan, Iran is building a secret nuclear facility and the terrorists who orchestrated 9-11 and killed over 3,000 Americans will not be tried as war criminals.

Our culture rewards the pretenders with reelection, or election to a higher office, or maybe even their own reality show or talk show, or best yet, multi-million dollar bonuses for destroying our financial system. And true American heroes who understand the value of those things that you can’t hold in your hand… they are the ones who you rarely hear about. We can no longer rely on packaged candidates, polling data and political consultants to get our country back on track.

Pat Tillman represents the polar opposite of our current political system. He never looked for the easy way out. He understood the meaning of the word sacrifice and willingly embraced his role in his platoon. He never expected to be rewarded for his service.

Tillman was one of the smallest safetys in NFL history compared to most NFL players, but he worked harder and longer and he hit with more force and velocity than bigger players. He couldn’t spin his way out of a bad play on the football field. Nor would he even consider it. Pat Tillman stood strong – on the field of play and on the field of battle. Not for fame or glory or money or power or political office. He did what he believed was right. No more and no less. That’s the kind of greatness that founded this country. We are in great need of more of that greatness today. In a world where the real thing is getting harder and harder to find, in my humble opinion, what we need are more people like Pat Tillman.

By Sarah Steelman, former Missouri State Treasurer