Like many Americans, I’m trying to keep up with the latest episode of “Who Met with a Russian Official”, which is the political soap opera currently consuming our nation’s capital.

One cannot, of course, predict how these inquiries will play out. There is, I suppose, a slim possibility that President Trump will turn out to be a diabolical Russian super spy whose real name is Boris Trumpanoff—but I wouldn’t count on this. There is a far greater likelihood that officials acting on Trump’s behalf were simply conducting unofficial negotiations with Russia prior to the Inauguration so that they would not be starting from scratch on January 20th at noon—which would not be all that unusual during a transition period. There is, I am going to guess, also a slight chance that some who were jockeying for appointments with the incoming administration thought that connections with Russian officials would make them more attractive candidates when the plum jobs were being parceled out. Finally, we might simply be seeing the obvious outcome of official ego colliding with run-of-the-mill poor judgment (I know we’ve seen this in D.C. way too many times before). However, in the final analysis, it just seems to me that our elected representatives are too obsessed with scandal—and have far too little concern with governing.

Now there is yet another facet to our latest Washington Sharknado of Scandal: fresh accusations of Presidential wiretapping that seem crazy-making for supporters of both Trump and Obama. Stay tuned for further details—or what pass for details in our “tin foil hat” media these days—as this story ricochets through the various levels of weirdness and paranoia that now pass for actual news. Edward R. Murrow must be spinning in his grave.

However, what is most important to remember is this: Neither of these stories has any bearing upon the most pressing issues facing our nation and citizens today. Because the “truth” of the details and memories of every person involved in both are guaranteed to be slippery and unreliable, it seems to me the credence that each story was immediately granted says much about the open wounds left behind by the election—everyone wants to presume the worst about everybody regarding everything.

Moreover, whether we are talking about Russians or wiretapping—or whatever next week’s titillating D.C. gossip might be—we are seeing the result of our lack of faith in our government and leaders. We are ready and willing to believe any infotainment or gossip that floats by, and our disturbing dedication to these distractions brings the real business of government to a grinding halt while we feud over that which is essentially meaningless. We are, therefore, just as much to blame for encouraging this destructive silliness—and we need to change the channel.

There was a time—hard as it might be to believe—when our federal government actually tried to govern, and we encouraged this. Now we are enveloped in the daily Washington games of leaking, spinning, exaggerating, and obfuscating. Continually sidetracking the machinery of governance in order to investigate the latest existential threat to our nation and liberty—only to find that, after many months of digging through all the dirty laundry, nothing but a pair of soiled tube socks is laying at the very bottom—is a long-running Potomac reality television show that has grown very stale and needs to be cancelled immediately.

Although our 24 hour news cycle—now driven near to the point of utter madness by our social media rants—is designed for scandal and strife, we seem oddly oblivious to just what a waste of time all of this is, and we perhaps have lost the ability to distinguish between actual threats to our nation and the simple stupidity we sometimes need to endure as part of our daily lives. All of us past a certain age can, for example, clearly remember the cascade of government investigations and talk show scream fests that led to our supposedly sane Representatives and Senators attempting to impeach a sitting President because he enjoyed some nookie with a doe-eyed White House intern, and (surprise!) he didn’t want his wife to know about it. Ah, the wonderful bravery and patriotism of all those who pushed this tawdry episode to its absurd extreme! What would we do without the Gong Show of inane and self-aggrandizing government investigations that comfort our enemies and turn us into a global laughingstock?

How much more of this kind of pointless nonsense our nation can survive is anyone’s guess, but it seems those who have forgotten the difference between governance and ignorance are determined to force us to endure more overblown investigations, harrumphing news conferences, and endless innuendo. Meanwhile, back here on Planet Earth, we struggle each day to keep a roof over our heads, pay for medical care, raise our children, and put food on the table. One might reasonably ask why our elected officials and their appointees are still serving up silly scandal instead of paying attention to our dire needs. Is it any wonder that our government is viewed with such contempt by the average American? Our lives and futures are being held hostage by those whose political, professional, and economic interests are benefitted by continually preening for the cameras. This is ridiculous and has to stop.

On behalf of all those who are desperate for change and improvement, please allow me to deliver a message to official Washington—Republican and Democrat alike—regarding their endless outrage over nonsense: We… Don’t… Care!

Moreover, please allow me to pass on a related message to our leaders that you may—if you choose—repost to all those who share our frustrations: Do… Your… Jobs!

We are a nation broke, angry, and ready to rumble. Focus on us and forget the idiotic and infantile scandals. We are tired of all the stupid games, and we now want to see action that will improve our lives and ensure a better future for both our children and the nation they will inherit.

The Gong Show needs to end….