The United States of America
Should I go into the dangerous waters of talking politics on my blog? My question is why talking about politics is so 'dangerous' today? I'm not going to talk about which party or what candidates are better in my opinion, but why as individuals we don't discuss it more often.
I recall growing up and having my parents and their friends talk about politics all the time. If there was a family get together or party of some sort, politics always came up at some point in the evening. Issues were discussed, argued, debated, and it was good healthy conversation.
Why is it that today, people are more afraid to talk openly about their thoughts and positions on political issues? Is it because the media does a poor job educating the public about what's really going on? That they focus more on political scandal and drama to obtain high viewer ratings than the more boring facts of serious issues facing our great country?
Could it be that people are so busy looking out for their own and their families well being that they don't have time to be concerned with what our government is doing? I mean, does it seem like the government of the United States is currently acting in the best interests of it's citizens or the best interests of a political party or campaign of the few? How much GOOD is our country doing for it's citizens and the world as a whole versus HARM?
There is no question the people who live in the United States are better off than the majority. But could it not be better? Where is the leadership and people standing up to say, "enough is enough"?
We live in a time where if one does speak their opinion, which is supposed to be protected by our government and freedom of speech, they receive death threats. How did it come to this? I could provide many examples like what happened to the Dixie Chicks or even the Rabbi who wanted more than just X-mas trees up at Sea Tac who in turn got death threats, but that would take too long.
I am not going to put blame on any individual or organization but say it is up to every citizen to start making things better and nurturing the idea of 'HOPE'. As a society we have become complacent. We need to discuss politics and the workings of our government. When we do not voice our opinions, our government and fellow citizens will not know what is and what isn't the will of the people.
So the next time you are at a social gathering, bring up a political issue and don't be defensive if somebody expresses a view different from your own. Learn from them, get to know what they think and why? When issues are talked about, others will want to sound knowledgeable and will seek out information.
I will state a couple issues that need to be addressed. I will not say what needs to be done with these issues, just that they need to be discussed:
1) Education
2) The Environment
3) The War in Iraq
4) The Economy
5) The Growing Divide Between Social and Economic Classes
6) What It Means to Be a Good Citizen
That should get us started. Lastly, I will state that I was one of those people who was just concerned with my own well-being and getting by. I didn't have time to get involved with politics and government. I did vote, but is that enough? Now I'm seeing that I can't help but get involved. You have to agree that the United States of America is in rough shape. It may have to even get worse before the people rise up and take responsibility since our government isn't. If you think America is doing really well, did you know that Wal Mart is the #1 employer?
Ok, I will put it out there... If you didn't notice from the first image, I'm not a fan of President Bush. His leadership is taking us in a scary direction. I miss the days of balanced budgets, budget surpluses, intelligence, education initiatives, and blow jobs being our nations biggest problem.
Good luck people.
