I don’t know about anyone else, but lately, I can’t help but feel discouraged, hopeless, and uncertain about where our nation is headed. If you were to ask me if I feel secure about my future on this earth right now it would be a resounding NO. Every direction I look is one looming threat after another, that all jeopardize our existence as we know it. The greatest frustration is that I feel we are at a cross road; we have the choice right now to recognize where things are headed, and then take action to prevent it, but I don’t think we will have the choice for much longer. If we can’t start working together as Americans and stop segregating ourselves from each other, I see terrible things happening in our future, everything from the state of our economy, to terrorist activities, to another natural disaster, and once again seeing our government fail us as we see more of our people fall behind the poverty line, or become random victims of an attack because our government can’t secure our ports or even define our borders.
My intentions here isn’t to complain about our government though, it’s to complain about the people that should have a grasp on their government, but have lost it through meaningless distraction, and apathy, and ignorance. This includes a vast majority of average American citizens, and I by no means exclude myself. But I ask, how long can we hang our heads in frustration, before it compels us to get off our ass and do something about it? Our nation was formed FOR THE PEOPLE, BY THE PEOPLE, yet we’ve grown into a nation where Corporations reign, with a government that isn’t willing to oppose the corporations for the good of the people.
“Money is the root of ALL evil” — this is a statement that I will hold true until the day I die. With money comes power, and with power follows greed, and not too far behind is the stank of destruction and death. All in the name of money.
What America needs to do is forget all our differences and stop bickering, and demand a government that WILL stand against corporate dominance, as well as embrace the principles our country was found on, and that is religious freedom. We were formed as a melting pot, and it used to be a source of pride and even power, because we stood united for the common goal of our country.
Now days, one religious sect type casts another and judgments fly free, as our character is judged by what religion we subscribe too. If I were to say I believe in GOD, but not in religion, sure to follow is someone questioning my morals, or even claiming I have none. This is the kind of thing that is dividing us one by one. Morality can be summed up quite easily, it’s the difference and perceptions of what is right and what is wrong. Perception varies, but I believe we all know where the fine line is even with your religious affiliations aside, and those who cross the line into what is wrong are not from one particular religion or another, they are from all different walks of life and all areas religion. If you cut out all the BS, in the end we are HUMAN, and if we are to co-exist, we need to accept each other and stop generalizing each other. Come spend a weekend with me, get to know me, lets discuss our differences and appreciate them….and then and only then, if you must, judge me & form your educated opinion of me - that is something I can respect.
“America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves.”
~ Abraham Lincoln
If we can’t start to work out our differences and compromise with each other, and if we continue to divide ourselves by the color red or the color blue, I do believe we are headed for very trying times, and in great danger of losing everything our ancestors fought for us to have. It’s true that we’ve always been divided by our many different liberal and conservative opinions/ views, but never before has it been more clear that we need to unite and pull this country back together..there are just too many issues on our plate for any of us to handle it alone. Two minds will always be better than one. We need to excite this so called “democracy” because it’s turning into nothing but a farce, and more like a dictatorship every day that passes.
And finally, here is an old saying that holds very true:
“ultimately the people will get the government they deserve”
We do get the government we deserve, and right now our lack of interest in who we are electing, or our individual bias, has given us exactly what we are demanding, which isn’t much.
Robert M. Hutchins once said that “The death of democracy is not likely to be an assassination from ambush. It will be a slow extinction from apathy, indifference, and undernourishment”
So by all means, feel free to disagree with me, or agree, whichever..because if your thinking about your country and it’s politics, then your discussing something besides the latest TV show, which means your on the right track. I think in most homes today conversations are very limited to superficial things and to talk about your government is considered boring unless your trash talking them, then it’s all good. All I am asking is to go one step further and think about what you could do to change the things you don’t like, and that when you do this, you don’t only look out for your belief system but also keep in mind other’s beliefs, and open your mind enough to hear ALL the facts from ALL sides — Not generalizations, not blanket statements or fabrications..but FACTS.
I personally think it’s an interesting subject, even if opposing views do get me a little fired up from time to time..I enjoy the interaction. It reminds me why we have the choice, and why we must take advantage of our freedoms, because in our liberty holds great power.
So long as the people do not care to exercise their freedom, those who wish to tyrannize will do so; for tyrants are active and ardent, and will devote themselves in the name of any number of gods, religious and otherwise, to put shackles upon sleeping men.
~ Voltaire
And if your wondering what brought this rant about, well, it’s been brewing for a while now, and then was finally brought to a head as I was up with a headache most of last night watching CNN..which usually I stay away from, because it gets these kinds of things started! haha. I’m starting to think more people need to rant about their views and politics though, maybe it will be contagious, and better yet, spring them into action.
What action will I be taking, you might ask? This post was my first step, even though my audience base is pretty small..one can only hope it gets around, and I’m also thinking of using the rest of my black ink cartridge to print out this post and distribute it too various mailboxes. Maybe it’s silly, or the impact will be next to nothing, but it’s in the right direction and that’s all I care about. I’m tired of watching the news and feeling powerless because of the inaction that surrounds me.
You can also go here to see what you can do in your local area; it’s a good starting point.
