An open letter re: politics and politicians

I've always believed that there are three things you don't discuss in polite company; religion, sex, and politics.

This is mostly because these are personal things best kept to oneself, yes? My religious and/or sexual preferences, at least, should have no bearing on how others live their lives.

Even with politics, my views are just that - MY views. I do not speak for anyone else nor do I expect that my view will be shared by anyone else, much less everyone.

That being said...

Dear Politicians:

What the heck are you doing?

Please stop with all the mudslinging and other B.S.  I don't need you to tell me how horrible your opponent is. Stop wasting your time and mine.

What I really want to know is, what are your plans for fixing the problems you'll face once in office? How will you implement these plans? What will these changes mean to me as a citizen?

Also, please be honest about it. Don't make grandiose promises to your constituency that you know you can't keep. If you're going to need help getting things fixed, tell us, and spell out what you need from us to make it happen.

Believe it or not, most Americans aren't sitting on their butts waiting for government hand-outs to solve all their problems. Sure, those people exist, but the majority of us are hard-working, honest people who simply want to live without financial, political and/or medical anvils hanging over our heads. Is that really so much to ask?

This is not to say that some honest, hard-working people don't need government assistance from time to time for different reasons. Government, in my humble opinion, should be ready to give a hand-up (not a hand-out) to those who need it, for as long as they need it. Granted, need is a relative term, but that's a whole 'nother topic.

So tell me... what are your plans? How do you intend to make them work? What do you need from me, from us, to make it happen (besides our vote, of course)? Your opponent isn't going to tell us what's right about you, so step up and do yourself the favor. I'm sure I'm not the only one who would really appreciate it.