Americans currently give the federal government and their representatives in Congress very negative reviews.  Americans are dissatisfied with the way the nation is being governed, have low confidence in the legislative branch of government, believe that the government has too much power and the individuals and businesses should be doing more and the government less.

The meaning of this passage is obviously stated in the paragraph.  The American people are unhappy with the way the nation is being governed.  This statement in itself seems too simple.  If they are unhappy then the real question needs to be why this is and what can be done about it.  The answer may be as simple as the question.  I chose this paragraph because of what it made me think about and how important to American life this issue is.  We live in a society where we don’t have to accept a government that we are not happy with and where we have the power to do something about it.

Personally I agree with the sentiment of this paragraph, the government does have too much power and control.  But there are two sides to every coin.  If people believe that business should do more and government less then they need to do more than merely complain about it; they need to do something about it.  The industrial leaders in this country need to step up and take hold of the reigns; to begin running their companies in a way that will benefit not only their own pockets but American society as a whole and they need to do this is ways that are compliant with laws that are in place to protect both the people and the environment.  We have to remember that in this country the power that the government has is given to it by the people that it governs.  We live in a democratic republic, electing people who we feel we can trust to carry out the business of the government in the way which we have elected them to do; no more – no less.

In reading this passage the first thought that went through my mind was to wonder how many of the people who responded to this survey actually took the time to go out and vote for the politicians and thus the system they are now complaining about.  Every person needs to exercise their right, their obligation, to vote in order for the government to be truly representative of all the people.  If people don’t vote then they cower down, giving up their say in how things should be done to the “Notables,” as Dahl referred to them, the people who already hold most of the money and therefore the power, to put into office those who are most likely to carry out the business of the government in ways that are beneficial to their own pocketbooks and to the benefit of those highly influential people and companies who were most effective at getting them elected to the office in which they serve and in doing so giving them as much power as they need to accomplish their agendas.  We have to remember that in this country we have one of the greatest systems of checks and balances possible – elections.  However if you do not participate actively in this system by taking the time to cast your ballot you have forfeited your right to complain about how the government runs, how much power it has and what is or isn’t being done.