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BS ‘n’ About…
Being an American
I am ashamed of being an American these days. Not because the workingman voted away all the union rights his forbearers died getting for him. Not because our Best & Brightest are encouraged to lie, cheat, and steal their way through the business and legal professions. Not because we drop bombs on children when the rest of the world is calling for negotiation and restraint. Not because we’re assaulting the Constitution in the name of ‘Homeland Security’. Not because we’re getting rich at the expense of our childrens’ education and our parents’ security. Not because we’re the last civilized citizens of Earth still voting the death penalty. Not because we’re mesmerized by the Lifestyles of the Rich & Famous while watching home ownership, healthcare, education for everyone, and social security become things of the past. Not because we’re afraid of everything we eat, anything that’s different, the cars we drive, and everyone we meet. No. That’s not why I’m ashamed. I’m ashamed because we’re just letting all of the above happen without fighting back. That’s why I’m ashamed.
The history of America has been forged by our forbearers believing in things enough to fight for them: The first settlements along the colonial coast. Our War for Independence. The preservation of the Union. Conquest and settlement of the Western States. Labor Unions. Women’s Suffrage. WWII. Civil Rights. The ‘60’s. Americans believed enough in these things to die for them. These days we don’t believe in anything enough to make it worth missing MustSeeTV. We no longer exercise our rights and duties as citizens of the incredible Democracy we share. We are just watching it go by.
Modern society deluges us with so much input that we have no time to get up off the sofa and do anything about any of it. At the same time our jobs have become more solitary, our neighborhoods more transient, and the places we used to congregate fewer and farer between.
People being people, we’re still as passionate about things as our forbearers. It is just that our avenues of unity and expression have been taken away. We watch TV to see what our neighbors think. We, the People have become an irrelevant shadow in America.
We need to get up off these sofas and get to know our neighbors again. We need to look at all we’ve lost and fight to get it back again. We need to look at all we’ve come to accept, and start drawing the line again. We need to become the harmonious voice of a free people leading the fight for the lofty principles upon which this nation was founded. We need to force ourselves back into the process.
I might be ashamed to be an American these days, but I’m not ashamed of Americans. From the first families to trek across the Bering Strait to those taking the Oath today, we are a nation built by those seeking new horizons. Unless we want to doom our grandchildren to some cyber-replica of a real life, we need to get up off these sofas and tap into that bit of magic that our ancestors found when they set off for the great unknown we call home today.
I remember a time when the other guys started the wars and tortured the prisoners. I remember a time when healthcare and pensions were part of the deal. I remember a time when we were in virtual revolution over events smaller than the ones we face today. I remember a time when it was a given that our kids’ lives would be better than our own. I liked that time. It wasn’t very long ago.
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