A Road Trip In A Great Country

I just finished what I call my annual pilgrimage to harass relatives.  This was a road trip, which was 1,760 miles long over a nine-day period.  I stayed in Oxford, Iowa; Tulsa, Oklahoma; and Des Moines, Iowa.

I saw visited three of my four sons, my brother and a lot of extended relatives.  It was great to see everyone. 

The great country I drove through made an impression on me.  I drove through Wisconsin, Iowa, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Minnesota.  I saw some of our great cities, like Kansas City, Tulsa, Des Moines, and Minneapolis/Saint Paul. 

I saw fertile farmland, lush grassland, and woodlands full of timber.  I saw oil wells, wind turbines, solar panels, and mining operations.  I saw beautiful lakes and rivers. 

I saw all kinds of livestock.  The new calves and foals in the pastures made some beautiful scenes. 

I had my choice of many routes with good roads and bridges.  I saw several trains and many trucks moving freight.  We live in a great country.

The natural and renewable resources of this country are amazing.  Most people seem to be good stewards of the land.  Obviously there are exceptions. 

The greatest resource this country has seems to be the people.  Most are moral and have a good work ethic.  Again, there are exceptions.  The most glaring exceptions are some of our inner cities.  We need to work on these areas. 

The ingenious and hard working people of this country have built the greatest country in the world.  They invent solutions and solve problems.  We have so many people willing to risk their personal resources to create companies and jobs.  This is capitalism at it’s best. The United States of America has a lot going for it. 

I was totally impressed with what I saw on my road trip.  Considering what I saw, it is hard to comprehend why we have a problem with government spending and our national debt. 

Maybe our biggest problem is in Washington DC.  Maybe our political elite doesn’t have a clue what is happening in the rest of the country.  Maybe they don’t care.  Maybe they just want to drain the country to increase their own power. 

Maybe Washington DC is the problem and not the solution.  Maybe the political elite just needs to get out of the way.  It is just something to think about.