There are many problems that we face as a nation... unemployment... war... people losing their homes... the economy...
Two years ago as we elected a new president there seemed to be so much hope... "Yes we can!" was the rallying cry... in spite of the fact that the problems we faced did not seem to have an easy end in sight... "Yes we can!" was our answer...
Our new president told us in his Acceptance Speech as President-Elect as well as in his Inaugural Address of the many problems we faced as a nation... the economic recession being only one of them... he told us that we would need to work together to find the solutions to our problems and that it would take time... that there were no quick fixes... that full recovery might not even be accomplished within a single term of office... and still we answered, "Yes we can!"
What has happened to us Americans?
Are those of us who are older and in influential and wealthy positions within our country so secure in our own financial futures that it really doesn't matter to us about those who are struggling? Has our thinking become, "We have what we want and need, so who cares about those who don't!"?
Have we older adults become so selfish, unfeeling and uncaring [unless of course the problems touch our own "pocketbooks"] ... or have we become so hungry for political power that we give up our common sense, civility and integrity to get it? Are those who are in a political office so unwilling to work together with others who do not belong to their particular political party, that they are willing to sacrifice those for whom they are supposed to be working? [...in case you aren't sure who I mean, I am talking about us common, not so wealthy or influential folk...]
And what about our younger adults? Have we in our country under the age of 25 or so become so enamored with fast foods and the instant access that the internet gives us to almost anything and everything that we want, that we have forgotten what it means when someone tells us there is no quick fix… that things will take time for us to recover fully? Are we two year olds who throw tantrums and stamp our feet because we want it “NOW!”…and then because we have not gotten what we want as fast as we want, we lose hope, we give up and we give in to fear?
Are those of us who are older and in influential and wealthy positions within our country so secure in our own financial futures that it really doesn't matter to us about those who are struggling? Has our thinking become, "We have what we want and need, so who cares about those who don't!"?
Have we older adults become so selfish, unfeeling and uncaring [unless of course the problems touch our own "pocketbooks"] ... or have we become so hungry for political power that we give up our common sense, civility and integrity to get it? Are those who are in a political office so unwilling to work together with others who do not belong to their particular political party, that they are willing to sacrifice those for whom they are supposed to be working? [...in case you aren't sure who I mean, I am talking about us common, not so wealthy or influential folk...]
And what about our younger adults? Have we in our country under the age of 25 or so become so enamored with fast foods and the instant access that the internet gives us to almost anything and everything that we want, that we have forgotten what it means when someone tells us there is no quick fix… that things will take time for us to recover fully? Are we two year olds who throw tantrums and stamp our feet because we want it “NOW!”…and then because we have not gotten what we want as fast as we want, we lose hope, we give up and we give in to fear?
What happened to the hope in the seeming infinite possibilities that existed two years ago, in spite of the difficulties we were enduring and that were sure to continue? Has our, "Yes we can!" turned into, "No we won't!"
What has happened to us Americans that live in “the home of the free and the brave”? Have we lost our courage in the face of those who would use fear and half truths and innuendo and outright lies for political power and gain, all the while hiding behind flashy smiles, cute “mama bear” rhetoric, and pretty faces?
Has the “home of the free and the brave” instead become a cesspool of fears and lies in which its residents have become mired?
Yes, I am worried about America... because I am worried about Americans!!
Yes, I am worried about America... because I am worried about Americans!!
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