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Jun. 18, 2007 When I was in the Air Force, we had three core principles: Integrity first, service before self, and excellence in all that we do. But can we say this about our government? The reality is that our government is a mixed bag of the good and bad. Some of it is great in that we have had a lot of freedoms for a long time. But it is also only a pipe dream to believe that the modern era of Americans truly care about the idea behind the government our founding fathers created. As approval ratings for Congress and the Executive branch fall, the leaders do little in the way of proving that they even belong running the country. But can we blame them? We elected them, and have to deal with their antics until the next election cycle when, most of us, re-elect the same incumbents and incompetence. So how do we fix it? We don't have the wherewithal to run ourselves. Most politicos are either lawyers or professionals of some ilk. Most of us are service employees or technicians. And we're also really good at being Monday morning quarterbacks. What do we expect? As Americans get louder in the blogosphere and submit form letters to their elected officials, there are the same amount that only connect through sheepish activities such as listening to someone else to come up with our November decisions. So what do we do? We could try to overthrow the government but would most likely get killed in the process. We could keep things status quo and keep our fingers crossed, like a senior citizen at the nickel slots. Or we could all try and stand up for our convictions, and peacefully protest the atrocious government we have allowed to fester and come to a head. The alternative is scary as hell. With our budget in ever deeper deficit, our national debt for sale to the highest bidder, and our jobs becoming less and less profitable, especially in a world abandoning our currency, we are prime for takeover. Don't believe me? Think of the scenario of a world power calling in their debts, and possibly even invading. It begins with our economy collapsing. The value of our currency falls off, and regardless of how wealthy you are, your money becomes worthless. If you hadn't already fled the country for Europe or Asia, you are stuck trying to reason your way out of your country's debt. Think hyperinflation like in post-World War I Germany. Next, the invading Army begins to fight our mighty forces. The only problem is that American principles of "me first" start to set in. Since our currency is worthless, our reserves of resources begin to dwindle without replacement, and since we can't pay for anything because our tax dollars are worthless, we begin to deplete said resources and we end up running out of gumption and gas. A tank is only as powerful as the fuel used to run it. Think about the tanks on jets and aircraft carriers, for instance. So next we start wearing football pads with metal spikes, and our hair gets all frizzy ala Mad Max 2 (The Road Warrior) and our life, as we know it, is pretty damn pathetic since we put all of our trust in the spirit of America. I know, I embellished much here, but what hope do you give to people who aren't used to working together for the common good? When we finally start working to make a better government, along with hiring qualified people to do what we can't do, and realize that the idea of true democracy isn't just a quote written on a bumper sticker, then we stand a chance of not becoming exactly the opposite of the original intention of being a united people. And that's why, for anyone who reads this, I call you to stop being so damn lazy, and start doing something about what you gripe about. Otherwise, you will be standing there scratching your head when the shit hits the fan. Peace. ------------ About the author: Nicholas Olson is an aspiring playwright and former journalist. He spent parts of his high school, college and professional life as a journalist, serving as a military journalist from 2000-06. Mr. Olson is an avid writer and enjoys political opinion. His views are not that of any particular party or of the country he once served: They are his own. Email: nicholasjolson@yahoo.com Comment on this article here! ------------ All articles are EXCLUSIVE to Useless-Knowledge.com. Please link to this article rather than copying and pasting it onto your site (which would be unauthorized and illegal). |
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