Over some period of time now, I have noticed a national division in this country. I'm not just talking about our increasingly fractured political institutions, or the entrenched political extremes that seem to define our politics. I'm talking about a simple basic concern for human dignity, kindness, and compassion, to our fellow human beings. This is not a uniquely American quality, it is universal in its nature, and appealing in the very smallest measure of its practice. As Americans we like to tell ourselves that we are the greatest country on the planet, and many are convinced that because we say it, it makes it so. However, there continues to be a very distinct difference in some people's mind of what that America should look like?
When I think of America, I think of the recent report of several people pushing over a burning car, to save the motorcyclist trapped underneath. I think of the communities that come together after natural disasters, with a resolve to share their grief, and rebuild their lives. I think of those who work 2 or 3 jobs to feed their families, while going to school to become something better than their parents were. I think of all the volunteers who help the hungry, the needy, the desperate, the disenfranchised, the people who through no fault of their own find themselves in a difficult position, and need help.
Yet, there are some among us who have been fortunate enough to never want or need for any of the material things we use to define success. They are people whose American dream started the day they were born, and because they have never had to endure the trials of those less fortunate, they have become insulated to the travails of their fellow man. Perhaps they did know those trials, but find it easier to forget them, because they were able to rise above? Whatever the reason, these 2 basic types of people exist in our country today, and it is getting much easier to pick each of them out of the crowd.
Those people driven by experience, and the knowledge that what is here today may be gone tomorrow, and have been touched by some type of personal tragedy that took away those material things that define their status in our society. I'm not talking about loosing a loved one, I'm talking about loosing your job, your home, your American dream. It is these people who struggle daily, who work, and pay their taxes, obey the laws, and fight to raise their children, that understand the compassionate America.
Then there are others who are inherently angry. There are bogey men behind every corner, and they are coming for what they have. Who are these people? They are immigrants, gay, black, poor, organized labor, environmentalists, and government regulators. They believe if you don't think as they do, you are a threat. They question your rights, your legitimacy, your legality, your right to function in the same world they do. They believe that America is the greatest country in the world, because FOR THEM, it is. They are pro-life, but kill doctors who perform abortions in the name of God. They want to have prayer in public schools, and applaud when a Governor touts how many people he's executed. Because any government is evil, those who are struck with an unforeseen medical misfortune should die, because they made the wrong choice. They watch as a congresswoman and 18 other people get shot, some killed, in a public parking lot, then auction off the exact same gun used in the shooting, as a show of support for the 2nd Amendment. They are afraid of government, minorities, regulators, anybody who can be perceived as a threat.
In the last 20 years these people have slowly taken control of our democracy. Backed by a never ending supply of money, they are slowly destroying the middle class. Now that they have the lobbyists, and the money, they are beginning to dismantle every institution in this country that stands in their way. Organized labor for starters, the dismantling of Medicare and Social Security, the wholesale destruction of government regulations on our food, our water, our air, our coal, our oil, our natural gas, our health care, and anything else that stands in the way of their corporate masters. One in six people in this country are now in poverty. people wrap themselves around blocks for miles at 2am to stand in line for free health clinics. The rich are getting richer and the poor poorer, and there they stand, this heartless class of Americans who have come out of the shadows to take their seat at the table of power. They don't compromise, they don't apologise, and they don't care what you think. You are either with them, or your against them, where do you stand?
When I think of America, I think of the recent report of several people pushing over a burning car, to save the motorcyclist trapped underneath. I think of the communities that come together after natural disasters, with a resolve to share their grief, and rebuild their lives. I think of those who work 2 or 3 jobs to feed their families, while going to school to become something better than their parents were. I think of all the volunteers who help the hungry, the needy, the desperate, the disenfranchised, the people who through no fault of their own find themselves in a difficult position, and need help.
Yet, there are some among us who have been fortunate enough to never want or need for any of the material things we use to define success. They are people whose American dream started the day they were born, and because they have never had to endure the trials of those less fortunate, they have become insulated to the travails of their fellow man. Perhaps they did know those trials, but find it easier to forget them, because they were able to rise above? Whatever the reason, these 2 basic types of people exist in our country today, and it is getting much easier to pick each of them out of the crowd.
Those people driven by experience, and the knowledge that what is here today may be gone tomorrow, and have been touched by some type of personal tragedy that took away those material things that define their status in our society. I'm not talking about loosing a loved one, I'm talking about loosing your job, your home, your American dream. It is these people who struggle daily, who work, and pay their taxes, obey the laws, and fight to raise their children, that understand the compassionate America.
Then there are others who are inherently angry. There are bogey men behind every corner, and they are coming for what they have. Who are these people? They are immigrants, gay, black, poor, organized labor, environmentalists, and government regulators. They believe if you don't think as they do, you are a threat. They question your rights, your legitimacy, your legality, your right to function in the same world they do. They believe that America is the greatest country in the world, because FOR THEM, it is. They are pro-life, but kill doctors who perform abortions in the name of God. They want to have prayer in public schools, and applaud when a Governor touts how many people he's executed. Because any government is evil, those who are struck with an unforeseen medical misfortune should die, because they made the wrong choice. They watch as a congresswoman and 18 other people get shot, some killed, in a public parking lot, then auction off the exact same gun used in the shooting, as a show of support for the 2nd Amendment. They are afraid of government, minorities, regulators, anybody who can be perceived as a threat.
In the last 20 years these people have slowly taken control of our democracy. Backed by a never ending supply of money, they are slowly destroying the middle class. Now that they have the lobbyists, and the money, they are beginning to dismantle every institution in this country that stands in their way. Organized labor for starters, the dismantling of Medicare and Social Security, the wholesale destruction of government regulations on our food, our water, our air, our coal, our oil, our natural gas, our health care, and anything else that stands in the way of their corporate masters. One in six people in this country are now in poverty. people wrap themselves around blocks for miles at 2am to stand in line for free health clinics. The rich are getting richer and the poor poorer, and there they stand, this heartless class of Americans who have come out of the shadows to take their seat at the table of power. They don't compromise, they don't apologise, and they don't care what you think. You are either with them, or your against them, where do you stand?
