Monday, January 2, 2012
Now is the time
Is America still the land of opportunity where hard work and playing by the rules are valued above all and will more often than not result in a betterment of one's material place in life?
Do we still believe that we need to create opportunities for all so most of us can succeed? Do we still believe that America is the shining city on the hill, the best hope for the downtrodden, the land of the brave and the free? Or has our self image changed now that we have been attacked from afar by a few religious believers who despised our way of life, by how we fought back indiscriminately, by how some among us stole our desire and ability to share the American dream, by us who collectively forgot what our values were?
Is that why we have a Tea Party that wants us to return to the Constitution, to the time when a black man was a fraction of a white one and when women were to be protected but not counted? Or why the Occupiers remind us that 99 to 1 is not how we define what is fair?
Now is the time to redefine who we are as individuals and as citizens, to restate what we believe in, what is important, what we share, and what is just. It's a time when we decide to roll up our sleeves and start to rebuild trust and balance the rights of the individual and our common desire to do what is best for all.
1 comment:
Well Leroy, "there you go again" .. equating a desire for Constitutional law to a return to slavery and the abolition of womens' voting rights. The Tea Party and most Americans want justices who stay within their constitutional limits and not become legislators. Regarding the 99-1, Our government sold out our manufacturing base many years ago, that is at the root of our income imbalance. We have cheap TVs, PCs, so our poor can amuse themselves while the Chinese work in sweat shops. Thank you Mr Nixon, Carter, Reagan, Bush, Clinton, Don C,
Post a Comment
You don't need an invitation