Something is radically wrong here. This is America, the land of the free, a democracy; Ronald Reagan said, à ‚¬Å"America is a shining city upon a hill, whose beacon light guides freedom-loving people everywhere." How can America have the most people locked up behind bars and be a beacon light for other nations?
Foreign Policy: i.e., wars of occupation. Here we are #1 again. Over the years the nations of the world have looked up to America because of our innovative society, our talented musicians, academicians, great sports figures, and historic advances such as Civil Rights legislation. But in recent decades they are seeing a new kind of America, one that has become overly aggressive in military engagements. And they do not like this new America they see.
As bad as was our totally unnecessary involvement in Vietnam, once our powerful military machine really got started, it has gone into high gear. All it needed was a presidency that was full of war hawks, led by Bush and Cheney. These two aberrations of history quickly launched invasions and occupations in Afghanistan and then Iraq. And now Pakistan has become a part of the equation.
This kind of aggressive military behavior is not welcome in the world of today. If this is the way that we intend to relate and interact with the world, by being the #1 power and aggressor, then we will find that we will evolve into a pariah nation; the antithesis of exceptionalism.
Financial Stability: The U.S., once the largest creditor nation in the world, has now become the world's largest debtor nation à ‚¬" and the largest by far. Our national debt is escalating so rapidly, due to a combination of military spending and a collapsing economy that it's almost impossible to accurately measure how many trillions in the red America is.
The U.S. Congress and this president, even after the disastrous economic disaster and subsequent bailouts to the crooked manipulators of
Wall St., are letting the financial sector continue to run wild. Where are the new financial regulations, the new legislation to curb the Wall St. abuses? Where is the sense of urgency that is needed to bring our financial sector under proper oversight and control?Hundreds of billions in bailouts to the financial pirates that had no specific conditions attached have fattened their capital balances but have done little to nothing to help homeowners and small businesses that are struggling to survive. The Stimulus Plan to create jobs is no more than a band aid at a time when the patient needs a complete transfusion.
Thoughts about America's greatness or superiority are now irrelevant and totally unproductive. This is a critical time in our history in which a myriad of overwhelming problems are threatening to tear this nation apart. This is a time when we must use creativity, innovation, strength and resolve to restore stability in America.
If we have the courage and conviction to find ways to do just that, then we can certainly feel very proud of our accomplishments and feel good about our place in the world.
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