Can-Do Attitude!

This morning's headline at the top of the Huffington Post Politics page online:

'RADICAL VISION' 

Obama Ramps Up Criticism of GOP Medicare, Spending Plan

"So?" You might ask.  Let's explore the example modern politics are setting for Americans today.  All too often we see "smear campaigns" where candidates, instead of focusing on their own strengths (perhaps to mask the lack thereof), spend millions of dollars highlighting the mistakes and weaknesses of their opponents.  What happened to self-confidence?  If you run for office, shouldn't you run because you KNOW you're the best candidate for the job?  By pointing out others' mistakes, low-points, and flaws, you only end up looking worse yourself.  

Back to Obama's criticism of GOP proposals.  Okay.  So I'm fairly positive that it's not the best plan for America right now.  But if our Chief Executive is spending his interview time criticizing it and calling attention to how bad it is, wouldn't it be a better way to pass time by only talking of solutions?  

As a child, I often was instructed, "If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all."  Good advice, if you ask me.  How can we successfully teach this concept to future generations, along with patriotic responsibility, if all they hear from our "leaders" is negative and usually bashing others?  

Norman Vincent Peale, the author of The Power of Positive Thinking, once said, "Believe in yourself! Have faith in your abilities! Without a humble but reasonable confidence in your own powers you cannot be successful or happy."  Words to live by.  Even for politicians.  

To my representatives, officials, and Congressmen and Women: You are in your position because a majority vote believed in you!  Those who elected you into your office were positive you were the best for the job!  Now walk in confidence!  Don't shy away from your principles or focus on what you are against!  What are you for?  Don't focus on the weaknesses or the can'ts, focus on strengths and cans!  We can make this nation the greatest in the world again!  Our strength is our unity!  Stand up for what you believe is right!  Show us the same confidence you had when you campaigned for office!  Be the best!  You can do it!

From greatscat!: Rachel Maddow: Michigan Revokes Town's Local Repre...

"Rachel Maddow reports on the use by Michigan's Republican Governor Rick Snyder of a new ' financial marshall law ' to disband a struggling..."

This DOES NOT make me a happy person. Rachel Maddow, my hat goes off to you. You are my new hero.

Does Patriotism still exist?

"...and I'm proud to be an American, where at least I know I'm free..."

Have you ever heard that song?  Have you ever sung it?  Furthermore, are you proud to be an American?  Do you know you're free?  

Do you love your country?  Are you devoted to it?  What happened to people who proudly stand up and say "I'm from the United States of America, the greatest country on Earth!"  I recently spent a year abroad, and until I was away from the United States for a while, I admit that I didn't really want too many people to know that I'm an American.  Why?  I don't really have an answer.  I guess it's because I hadn't really seen too much of my country that made me proud, that caused an uprising from within me that wanted to wear red, white, and blue everywhere I went.  But you know, there are a lot of things we have in America that don't exist elsewhere.  I know I criticize our government a lot.  And I know there are a lot of things that could use some improvement.  But I honestly think that if more people were proud of their country, they would do everything in their power to truly make it the "greatest country on Earth."  

Let's use an analogy.  Think of a small child, maybe six years old, who has just gone to the dentist and received a sticker for his good behavior.  He will wear that sticker with pride all day and make sure that everybody sees it!  He will proudly say, "I was a good boy at the dentist!"  And he will do everything within his power to preserve that sticker, to make sure it is still shiny and clean.  

You see, if you aren't proud of something, then you won't mind letting it go to waste.  Which is what seems to be happening to our country.  Our early principles, like "liberty and justice for all," have been forgotten, and personal agendas and financial gain have taken precedence.  Such a shame.  We mustn't allow money-hungry "politicians" decide what happens to our people; we should live up to our democratic ideals and let our voice be heard!  Being American isn't a bad thing; it is what you make it!  Let's make this country an amazing place again!  

No Taxation without Representation

***DISCLAIMER***  Due to technological difficulties, I have not been able to post since last week.  Your understanding is appreciated.

Here we are again, gearing up for yet another presidential election.  Didn't we just do this?  I mean, we are still in the second quarter of 2010!  Before you know it, your fellow countrymen will start wearing red, white, and blue whenever possible.  They will strike up conversations in line at Publix about Donald Trump and Sarah Palin.   Scenery changes to star-spangled elephants and donkeys.  All over the country.

The views expressed in this sign are not necessarily those of the blogger.

And people gear up to vote.  This is their big chance to "change the wrong back to right," or "decide on the fate of my country."  November 2012 is the one opportunity you will have to voice your opinions, so you better make it count!  Right?  WRONG.


Yes, the electoral process is a huge part of the democracy that created our nation.  No, Election Day is not your only chance to have a say in the next four years of policy-making and budget grappling!  I know I have touched on this subject before, but I must make it clear to you.  It is our civic duty, as U.S. citizens, to let our elected officials know what we think!

What happens if we don't?  People report to the polls on a beautiful Tuesday morning, receive their ballot, and fill it out according to their favorite candidates.  They leave, and proudly wear an "I Voted" sticker for the rest of the day.  In January, a new (or incumbent) President takes office, and begins to do his (or her) job, the best they know how.  Around March, the complaints begin.  "It's been two months, and President So-and-So has yet to legalize marijuana, I can't believe I voted for him!!" or any number of oddities I've heard right after a politician takes office.  And then the revolutionaries form new political movements determined to overthrow a particular party/politician.  And people swear to never vote for that political party again.  Congress changes majority party, and can't do something so seemingly simple as compromise.  This election-only type registered voter contributes to complete chaos in our political system and doesn't even know it!

So how do we avoid this turmoil?  Pay attention to the issues at hand.  Check your Congressman's website every once in a while.  Get involved in a community organization working for the better good of the people.  Sign a petition.  Call your Senator's office.  Strike up conversations at community events to help others become aware of an issue at hand (even if they don't take the same stance as you).

Let's pledge to be part of a more aware, more active United States!  Let's hold our Congressmen accountable for their votes!

Closed Borders, Closed Minds

Wasn't our country, in her early days, nothing but immigrants?  Settlers from Spain, Sweden, France, Germany, England.  Catholics, Puritans, Quakers.  Rich, poor, successful, not-so-successful...People looking for a second chance.  An opportunity to make a difference.  To "be somebody."  To be free from persecution by their former governments.  To create an ideal settlement, a colony, a new life.

You know, I read about our Nation's history and then I read about "Immigration Reform" and I get a little confused.  When did "Americans" decide to close our borders?  At what point did we forget that these United States happened only because other people left their own countries, seeking a better opportunity?  Seeking freedom?  Seeking domestic tranquility?

Immigration Reform is a term tossed around all over the news and internet these days.  People are arguing whether foreign nationals should be permitted to enter the US temporarily to do a job no American is willing to do.  (Have you ever been eager to pick tomatoes or okra?  It's not easy, nor fun.)

Now, people are afraid to try to enter the US.  Our border with Mexico is heavily guarded, and people trying to cross into our country do so in fear.  Why?  Why are we so against letting people from other countries come here for a better life?  If it weren't for settlers coming here in the first place, don't they realize that we wouldn't be where we are today?

Now, if you don't have a lot of money in the bank or a really good job in your home country, it is extremely difficult to get a visa to visit the Land of the Free.  Wasn't Georgia founded merely as a home for debt prisoners?  Didn't unsuccessful fisherman from France settle New Hampshire because they needed a better fishing spot?

Now, if, due to your religion, you dress a certain way, you pray in a different language, or read Scriptures that are not the Bible, you are persecuted.  Trying to get on an airplane in a turban?  Forget it.  Wearing a headscarf to class?  You better not be a terrorist.  That's the attitude in most places around the country.  What is that??  That's not Freedom.  Weren't Massachusetts, Maryland, Rhode Island, and New Jersey all settled by persons/groups seeking freedom from religious persecution?

Our differences are what define the United States of America.  We came together in the late 1700s to unite ourselves for a common cause - freedom.  What has happened to our country since then?  Why do we not allow others to seek the same liberty for which we have always seemed to struggle?

Ignorance is Bliss...or is it?

We have a huge problem in the United States.  It's much greater than the recession, the budget crisis, the wars, and the lack of equal rights, combined.  Registered voters are voting (that's good...) without knowing what they are voting for/against!!!  Why is this a problem? Well, we end up with governors who are not so popular, i.e. Rick Scott of Florida, presidential candidates  who aren't exactly "top-notch," we get stuck in wars we have no business being in, and our governmental stability is threatened because we have representatives complicating our budget far more than necessary.

LZ Granderson, in his weekly column on CNN Opinion, wrote, "...Yet we all know people who gleefully admit they know nothing about politics, don't have time to find out what the current issues are or even know how the government works, but go out and vote. Want to know why it seems Washington is run by a bunch of idiots? Blame this hiccup in our political system for starters. What's a solution? Weed out some of the ignorant by making people who want to vote first pass a test modeled on the one given to those who want to become citizens."

I remember my high school Civics class; I learned so much about the way our country works, and enjoyed it, knowing that I would soon be able to take part in the democratic processes of this great nation.  It made me feel like it was an honor to register to vote, to join what I assumed was an elite group.  In reality, it was no big deal.  I registered in about five minutes, and felt no different after I filled out the generic form.  What if there was more to it than putting your address and personal info on the registration form?  What if there was a test, to prove that you are qualified to vote on issues that affect us all?

I think we should strongly consider it for any upcoming elections.  I mean, can anybody just show up on the field to play as a wide receiver for the Colts without ever having played a single game of football?  Can anybody stand in as an engineer designing a skyscraper in Dubai without showing proof of their qualifications?
So why should just anybody be able to elect the officials running our country?  


Over the next few days, we are going to go through a "refresher course," using basic questions from the Citizenship and Naturalization tests.  So we are all on the same page.

Are You Willing to Get Angry?

"There must be a positive Passion for the public good, the public Interest, Honour, Power, and Glory, established in the Minds of the People, or there can be no Republican Government, nor any real Liberty."

John Adams, the second president of our dear Nation, wrote these words in 1776 in a letter to Mercy Otis Warren, America's first female playwright.  I think he was onto something here...

"There must be a positive Passion for the public good...established in the Minds of the People..."  Do you have a positive Passion?  As you must know by now, I am very fond of word definitions.  "Passion" is defined as "intense, driving, or overmastering feeling or conviction; an outbreak of anger."  Would you be willing to break out in anger for the good of the public?  What about honor?  Power?  What is it that strikes a chord within you?  Mr. Adams said that if we don't have that intense conviction (or we aren't willing to get angry about it) within our minds, then we can forget about real Liberty.  I understand from this phrase that our freedom starts from within.  Think about that.  Do you feel free, from the very depths of your being?  Do you know that you are free?

"...the public good, the public Interest, Honour, Power, and Glory," all of these are ours.  If we are willing to fight for them.  If there is a passion burning within us, established in our minds, to have these things, then we can begin to have a real Republic.  I like Encyclopaedia Britannica's definition of Republic, "a form of government in which the people, or some significant portion of them, retain supreme control over the government."  You see, we have the right to vote, do demand representation from our elected officials, and to hold them accountable for the decisions they make on our behalf.  But we only retain that right, that supreme control over government, if we make our Passion for our rights public.

There is no such thing as passive activism.  For the last two and a half centuries, rights have been won, our Constitution has been interpreted time and again, not because of somebody waiting on their neighbor to take action, but because people have gotten angry.