The above title is a description not of what America is these days but rather what we need to become. We've lost our sense of purpose and community, and even the emphatic (and historic) election of President Obama sometimes seems a little hollow.
Most people who voted for Barack Obama would reason (and probably believe wholeheartedly) that they wanted to make a statement that America is ready for a change in the right direction. Whether it was his optimistic rhetoric, race, or political philosophies, Barack Obama represented a stark contrast to the overtones of the last eight years. But too often, though, I've found that the election of President Obama is taken as the be all and end all of the democratic process or the death knell of racism, divisiveness, etc... in this country.
Something tells me that so long as there are politicians, there will be disingenuous manipulation of the democratic process, and until there is only one person living in this country, there will be discrimination based on lineage. But that is beside the point. The point is that while we continue to wallow in the achievement of the historic election, the economy continues to decline and world crises continue to pile up at our doorstep.
We have not scored the game-winning touchdown, we've kicked the field goal that brings it back to a one-possession game. There are many out there who can certainly see the situation as such. Part of the reason, though, many may not see it that way is that there are far too many Americans who put all the blame of the last eight years on the Bush Administration. Much of what the Bush Administration did (and didn't do) is certainly worthy of reproach, but it is not the sole contributor to the decline of the United States over the past eight years, especially when you consider the fact that the American people reelected Bush in 2004.
No, we are to blame. AmeRica has becOme a nation of capitalists on steroiDs. And if we don't regain some control over how this nation progresses, then the growth and well-being we wish to see will become erratic and cancerous.
So let's move forward. Let's nod our heads at the history we've created and move forward with what we need to do. I think the video below describes a little more succinctly what I was trying to say:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WdfWAr8nNMI
Posted by ryan at February 21, 2009 4:43 PMdirection action.
Posted by: jayme at February 25, 2009 12:25 PMShaffffer!!!!!!
HSM3? OMG!!!
You are right. I act exactly the same in 2009 as I did 2000-2008. The only real difference for me is when I whenever I see Obama I feel proud and whenever I saw Bush I laughed.
And don't blame everything on A-Rod, or baseball.
Posted by: Joel at February 25, 2009 10:09 PMI think that A-Rod and people of his ilk are to blame for the downfall of america. I think that all of the dumbasses who revoted for bush are also to blame. I think the music industry is also to blame. Name one good song that has come out since 2000. I was never entirely on the Obama bandwagon because his foriegn politics scared the shit out of me, but I do like what he's doing so far. At least he could probably pass the 4th grade without cheating.
Posted by: rob at March 3, 2009 3:13 AMYou know, I didn't see this until just now. Yikes. What do you think about the way America acts now that we denied the far more talented American Idol Adam Lambert his lime light, mostly because people didn't want a gay idol? I only say this because I read stories of churches holding lock-ins to vote for Kris Allen so that a 'sexual deviant' wouldn't be idolized. Also 100 days have passed and America may or may not be a little different now. We need a new post from you!
Posted by: Naimul at May 22, 2009 1:18 PMthis is the first time I've been on wandyteeth in 3 years. Why am I here? Well, I'm sitting in a cafe at RISD by myself. I could have chosen to sit at a table with my wallet or cell phone, or I could go on the computers, type furiously in response to emails like I have important business to take care of, or I could awkwardly walk down the street trying to hold that same cell phone and wallet while also trying to sip my hot coffee and eat my delicious provolone, hummus, and tomato bagel. So, as you can guess, I chose the middle of those three options. I checked my email only to find five facebook invitations to events I was not interested in (one of which was from Bryan Klopping....) and one group invitation from Jason Chan to invite me to his lost cell phone group. Jason lead me to a series of thoughts that ended at "Is wandyteeth still around? and if so... what's new with that old crew I was an adjunct member of formally known as combatrhino?" I admit I was rather disappointed to see such dwindling participation, but alas, la vie continue. So, here I am, reading my brother's post which is only one of about three posts in the year 2009, and I have only one thing to say in response to Rob:
Milkshake
Posted by: shaffer's sister at October 1, 2009 1:15 PME. Shaffer is cool. What an artist! good times. keep on rolling.
Posted by: Joel at October 1, 2009 1:41 PM