...just a rat in a cage...
Either due to laziness, or perhaps spontanuity, I never post about ANYTHING, useally unless someone brings it up on my friends list :) So a post about Mister Nader running again by my friend, and fellow native Upstate New Yorker, that_redhead inspired a huge rant, that starts there and ends here.
I am faced with this problem. I firmly beleive in democracy. That everyone should have a voice, and that no one should be ignored. Unfortunately I also beleive in personal freedom, wich means I shouldn't be governed by a mass of ignorant dolts pulling and swaying the vote. If I want the right to influance the government, I must sucueed to allowing places like the south, you know the carolinas, and texas, to vote as well. The same states that refuses to seperate curch and state, and hangs it's confederate or "rebel flag" in public places gets as much pull as say California and New England... relatively speeking. The 2000 election proved thats not entirely true. Sometimes I wish we allowed the south to sucueed from the union, and just pulled a "bush" and liberated the slaves by force. Then said "have your shite land back, don't cry to us when you fall..." of if only we wern't relying upon agriculture and tobacco as our main income.
Enough anti dixie propaganda, I know plenty of people in the south are fine, educated citizens, and tons of people in the "north" aren't worth the lives of the 15 animals they consume a day. Hell, I grew up therel. But my point is, overall, I'm forced to live by laws and regulations that morally make me ill... physically ill. Injustice, prejudice, hypcracy... commited by my government. And when I visit other nations they will see me as another "American" and I am subject to the sins of my yokel neighbor who chews "tobacie" and uses the word "nigger" more than as a social lubricant. I am forced to wear the shame of my middle class housewife neighbor who thinks driving her 8 year old son to soccer practice is justification for a SUV that makes less than 18 miles to the gallon. "And look at all the space i have for groceries!"
Thats who I am, am American, and I'm ashamed.... I will not deny that I have PRIDE in America, as an ideal. I will never ever disrespect the flag, or turn my back on it again, because I have found out thru these trials what TRUE patriotism is. Not voting to loose your civil liberties to have secutiry. Not blindly backing King George Bush II, but seeing that your nation is flawed, corrupt, in danger of loosing everything it's worked so hard to build, and saying I am willing to bleed for this nation too. I am willing to fight the good fight, aginst any enemy of freedom, Be him muslim, or texan, to serve my nation, or dissent aginst it's political and religious leaders in times of tyranny.
Serving your nation does not mean supporting it when it's wrong. It means supporting it when it's right, and scolding it when it's wrong. A nation is like a child, a balance of positive and negative reinforcement will allow it to flourish, an imbalance may cause it to implode upon itself.
I am faced with this problem. I firmly beleive in democracy. That everyone should have a voice, and that no one should be ignored. Unfortunately I also beleive in personal freedom, wich means I shouldn't be governed by a mass of ignorant dolts pulling and swaying the vote. If I want the right to influance the government, I must sucueed to allowing places like the south, you know the carolinas, and texas, to vote as well. The same states that refuses to seperate curch and state, and hangs it's confederate or "rebel flag" in public places gets as much pull as say California and New England... relatively speeking. The 2000 election proved thats not entirely true. Sometimes I wish we allowed the south to sucueed from the union, and just pulled a "bush" and liberated the slaves by force. Then said "have your shite land back, don't cry to us when you fall..." of if only we wern't relying upon agriculture and tobacco as our main income.
Enough anti dixie propaganda, I know plenty of people in the south are fine, educated citizens, and tons of people in the "north" aren't worth the lives of the 15 animals they consume a day. Hell, I grew up therel. But my point is, overall, I'm forced to live by laws and regulations that morally make me ill... physically ill. Injustice, prejudice, hypcracy... commited by my government. And when I visit other nations they will see me as another "American" and I am subject to the sins of my yokel neighbor who chews "tobacie" and uses the word "nigger" more than as a social lubricant. I am forced to wear the shame of my middle class housewife neighbor who thinks driving her 8 year old son to soccer practice is justification for a SUV that makes less than 18 miles to the gallon. "And look at all the space i have for groceries!"
Thats who I am, am American, and I'm ashamed.... I will not deny that I have PRIDE in America, as an ideal. I will never ever disrespect the flag, or turn my back on it again, because I have found out thru these trials what TRUE patriotism is. Not voting to loose your civil liberties to have secutiry. Not blindly backing King George Bush II, but seeing that your nation is flawed, corrupt, in danger of loosing everything it's worked so hard to build, and saying I am willing to bleed for this nation too. I am willing to fight the good fight, aginst any enemy of freedom, Be him muslim, or texan, to serve my nation, or dissent aginst it's political and religious leaders in times of tyranny.
Serving your nation does not mean supporting it when it's wrong. It means supporting it when it's right, and scolding it when it's wrong. A nation is like a child, a balance of positive and negative reinforcement will allow it to flourish, an imbalance may cause it to implode upon itself.