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OpEdNews Op Eds    H2'ed 1/17/19

"We're mad as hell and we're not going to take it anymore"

By       (Page 1 of 3 pages)   14 comments
Message Michael Payne
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That title comes from the 1975 movie, Network. In this classic film a highly respected, longtime TV news anchor, Howard Beale, played by actor Peter Finch, reached a point at which his anger and frustration over what was happening in America simply boiled over.

One evening as he was doing his show he no longer could restrain himself. And he erupted in a fit of anger. After ranting about all the things that were wrong in this country, he railed at his audience and said; "So, I want you to get up now. I want all of you to get up out of your chairs. I want you to get up right now and go to the window. Open it, and stick your head out, and yell: 'I'm as mad as hell, and I'm not gonna take this anymore."

Well, that was then and now it's close to 45 years later. Has anything really changed since then, has this government taken the nation in new and more positive directions? Are this country's many problems even being addressed? It sure doesn't seem like much of anything has really changed and, in fact, things are even worse.

This U.S. government isn't much different from the one in place back in 1975, as evidenced by the fact that it continues to refuse to do the will of the people. But, as was the case back in Beale's time, the American people don't seem capable to rise up in a state of anger and frustration and do something about it. They look for new leaders to come forward to energize and motivate them to demand that this government changes its ways. But no such leaders are in sight.

In this article, I'll take Beale's words of anger and frustration and compare them with what is going on in this country today, how the people of our nation are reacting, or, how they are not reacting.

Beale: "I don't have to tell you things are bad. Everybody knows things are bad. It's a depression. Everybody's out of work or scared of losing their job. The dollar buys a nickel's worth. Banks are going bust."

Now, in today's America: the people watch as the U.S. corporations and the wealthiest Americans are given yet another massive $1.5 trillion tax cut while the majority of Americans get the crumbs left on the table. The rich get richer and a great portion of Americans have to work two or more jobs to make ends meet.

Beale: "we know the air is unfit to breathe and our food is unfit to eat, and we sit watching our TVs while some local newscaster tells us that today we had fifteen homicides and sixty-three violent crimes as if that's the way it's supposed to be."

Now: Americans watch as the administrators of the EPA, at the direction of Trump, have eliminated or watered down 76 important rules and regulations that were created to assure that the people of this country have clean water to drink and clean air to breathe. And that the environment is adequately protected.

Beale: "We know things are bad worse than bad. They're crazy. It's like everything everywhere is going crazy."

Now, in today's America: it's so bad that we now have a president who is emotionally challenged and, yet, Congressional Republicans who can see that he has these serious problems refuse to do anything about it and pretend that all is well. Their duty to this country, its people, and and the U.S. Constitution would be to remove him from office immediately through impeachment proceedings.

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