SO, WHAT DO WE LOOK FOR?

It looks as though Republicans will gain majority control of the House of Representatives and will make significant gains, if not control, in the Senate.

So what does it all mean? What should we look for?

If the majority of the newly elected Republicans stand for what they say they stand for, and if the "Good Old Boys" already in power, both Democrat and Republican, don't make it their goal in life to break the political backs of the newbies, and if the newbies are strong enough to resist the pressures of being rookies, then there is a chance that there might be some reasonable and meaningful changes in congress.

Those are a lot of "IFs."

The institutions of government are well entrenched and it is quite possible for those in power to prevent newcomers from being able to be heard, let alone get things done.

Newcomers are "encouraged" to play the game of "I'll scratch your back if you'll scratch mine."

The way that plays out is that if a representative wants to introduce a bill, or a change of rules or whatever, he/she will only get support from the entrenched if they go along with some favorite program or issue of the establishment.

There will come a time when the inductee will be tempted to throw up his/her hands and say, "That's it! I can't fight the system! I'll have to make some compromises!"

This is the point at which those of us who elected them must not rest on our electoral laurels.

If we are going to elect them, and if we expect them to make a difference in the system, then we must go beyond the polls and continue to encourage the rookies and admonish the established to the point that they realize that they must make the proper decisions on our behalf.

Government of the people, by the people and for the people will only work if the people involve themselves in the system.

Part of the reason we got to this miserable point in American history is that too many of us sat quietly by, wringing our hands and complaining but doing nothing while our elected officials sold the American way down the river.

This must stop!

We must not imagine that our task is done once we pull the lever (or touch the screen, as the case may be) at the polling place.

If we are going to insist that "they work for us," then we must be about the business of managing them with emails, letters, phone calls, Facebook entries, text messages and use of "the cloud," along with whatever other marvels of electronics come our way in the next couple of years.

Do we want Obamacare repealed?

All at once, a little at a time, partially, certain provisions (like the civilian quasi-military corps dictated therein) or what?

We must be certain and we must be clear.

We must also be civil and polite about our desires.

But we must be involved.

Tea Parties must continue. Protests at our representatives' offices must take place. We must innundate them with information about what we expect them to do.

In other words, we must be doing what we should have been doing all along: involving ourselves in the process of governance.

There are those in power now who fully expect you to lie down and roll over for them once the tempest has subsided.

Don't do it!

Stay active!

Stay in touch!

There will always be a list of senators and representatives in my sidebar on which you can click and get in touch with yours.

Then, and only then, can we look for meaningful changes to take place in Washington D.C.