Saturday, July 11, 2009

Why America is a Great Country (work in progress)

America is great not because we have Christian churches, but rather because we have Christian churches, Hindu Temples, Buddhist Temples, Mosques, and Synagogues.

America is great not because we speak English here, but because depending on where you are, you will hear Spanish, Arabic, Chinese and Japanese and a host of other languages, and see signs, advertisements and the like, in these languages.

America is great because while in most states, we won't allow gays to marry, at least we don't stone them to death like they do in the Mideast

America is great because while we may arrest and imprison drug offenders, at least we don't chop off their heads like they do in Saudi Arabia.

America is great because we respect and regard both sexes as equal and do not treat our women like dogs as they do in Mideast countries.

America is great because it’s a reflection of the greater world, a true melting pot representing the world at large and symbolic of the rich cultural heritage of societies across the globe.

Regarding the Political Divide

Why is it conservatives don't mind busting the budget and bankrupting the future by spending trillions on our Mideast policy, invading and bombing nations, invariably ending up spending money on rebuilding these countries’ infrastructures, but they scream bloody murder when we want to spend money on this country taking care of the poor, providing health care for the uninsured and educating our children?

Why is it that conservatives constantly malign and impugn the character of millions of Americans by bashing "so called" big bloated government” not realizing or acknowledging that in America we are government OF the people, BY the people, and FOR the people. Now, I may be wrong and please correct me if I am, but does not government for the most part employ Americans or in the very least employ people in this country thus keeping the money they spend in this country’s economy? And from what I know local, state and federal governments do not employ undocumented workers, but many private companies will, thus eventually sending much of their private money south of the border?

And what about those employees on the government payroll? I’m not talking about the fat cat incompetent bureaucrats and corrupt politicos. How about the cops on the street or the city worker fixing the potholes in the street? What about the civil engineers designing public works projects. What about the county clerks, and assistant D.A.’s or the judges and magistrates? Why do conservatives continue to malign and impugn the character of such a large swath of working Americans?

Do the only true Americans work in the private sector?

Why is it then conservatives want a great country, but whine when they have to pay for it? Why is it that conservative constantly decry government? So they are upset that their tax dollars and the tax dollars of the corporations and entrepreneurs are appropriated by their government, when the money could be used to grow their businesses and create jobs for the people of countries such as India where they inevitably ship their jobs, or spend their money hiring illegal aliens invariably sending American tax dollars south of the border or else pay the Chinese for the products they import.

Look folks, I’m not for big government of small government. I’m for smart government. I don’t buy into the ideologies of the left or the right. I think Rush Limbaugh and Bill Reilly are the ideologue buffoons on the right and are matched by their buffoon ideologue counterparts on the left such as Michael Moore or Keith Obermann. Sure, if anything I lean left of center, and am sympathetic to the libertarian viewpoint but that doesn’t mean I don’t hear or agree with all arguments from the right.

Myself I want big government out of Iraq and Afghanistan, out of a woman's womb, and to leave my urine and blood alone. I don't want big government to become a police state, with surveillance, eaves dropping, and spying on its own citizens becoming common place. And as much as I think it's needed, maybe it's time to rethink all of the foreign aid we hand out. Not that I don't think helping people around the world isn't a good thing, but if we bankrupt this nation, we won't be able to help ourselves much less the rest of the world.

Another interesting point is that many conservatives are both fiscal and social ones, thus postulating the interesting paradox that while they don't subscribe or believe in the theory of evolution, they believe in the survival of the financially fittest. Because when the market place does its thing, inevitably there are those individuals and companies that will fall hard, while the "fittest" individuals and companies will rise to the top.

Isn't it ironic that conservatives aren't willing to pay or support the less disadvantaged unless they subscribe to their viewpoints, go to their churches or embrace their ideologies? And if they don't, they really don't want their hard-earned tax dollars going to help them, however should these unfortunate ones end up committing crimes in order to take care of themselves, I would imagine conservatives are more than happy to build prisons, hire guards, close, house and feed them.

If government will provide and help with a safety net, those on the bottom on the social ladder by helping clothe and feed them, educate them, provide shelter and help them at the most basic level, in order to keep them out of our jails, and tying up or legal system,why is that a bad thing?

Or perhaps we could just execute the poor, thus relieving these poor impoverished Americans of the burden of taking care of undesirables either through social programs or through the judicial system. That why these poor impoverished middle and upper class Americans can spend more at the mall, spend more time in the Bahamas, and spend more time on the golf course.

Is this a great Christian nation or what?

I often hear from right wing talk show hosts about how great it is the people stand for their convictions, that they hold firm to their beliefs. Keep in mind that Islamic militants, white supremacists, fascist socialists and communists also stand by their convictions and hold firm to their beliefs as well. So depending on what those beliefs and convictions are, we can see that the ideal of "standing by your convictions" can be a good or bad thing.