The American Dream Deferred

The American Dream Deferred

“America was established not to create wealth but to realize a vision, to realize an ideal - to discover and maintain liberty among men. “-Woodrow Wilson

It has been many years since the time of American Dreams realized. It would seem, since the birth of this great nation, that we the people have forgotten to realize the vision. A vision , that sculpted the mountain of the American way and made the U.S. the pinnacle of the World. Founded on the principles of liberty, freedom, and justice for all, we have throughout history contradicted the very principles that made us who we are. We as America have been the wind that has carried democracy, natural rights, and freedom throughout the valleys of the world, yet we deny many who are our fellow the natural right for well being.

Today’s America has matured from the days of slavery, denial of women’s rights, civil rights for all Americans, and public discriminatory racism to childish bickering of democrats versus republicans, conservatives versus liberals, and patriots and terrorism. When will the debauchery in America end. When will our greed and selfishness be replaced with Americanism and selflessness. People elect their representatives for irrational views than for the commonwealth of people and our nation. Our country bled the blood of countrymen for rights of freedom of religion but dictated politicians to the code of “Christianity”. Our spite of our fellow man and self interest blind our founding principles of the American way. The American dream.

Somehow we as a people have tarnished the glorious western light of liberty with pettiness and and foreign bullying. We arrogantly borrow from countries whose governmental ideologies differ from one another and then shove democracy in to nations whose culture and religion that conflicts with our concepts. The American Dream has evolved into the nightmare from the west, who dictates and forces our religion and democratic ideologies on the very difference that we cherish as America. How have we stray so far from home. Why do we roam for fear and force instead of exploration and innovation. We have allowed our fear to distort our vision of the world and manipulated Christianity to justify the cause.

It is that clouded judgment that has somehow made Christianity a qualification to be a real American. In a country founded on the bases of freedom of religion, we have become a nation that persecutes and isolate those whose religious preference differs from our own. In today’s world, we fight the crusade against Muslim nations and label it the war on terror so we can have a clear conscience. when we go to bed at night. Subsequently. we have become the very terrorist we despise and seek out. Not to point fingers but, it seems since Conservative Republicans took office eight years ago, hate, fear, and deception has been the fuel that drove our military into the heart of Muslim nations to wage war with and idea.

From observation of this nation’s past decade, one notion is true the American dream has been lost, abandoned for hate, diminished by fear and discouraged by deception. When will she return, when lady America grace American shores with her glory. It is not certain the time nor the hour, but merely determined by the minds and hearts of the American People who dream the dream of dreams.- William R. Gilbert, Jr.

Wake Up America

Why America? Why?

What are we fighting for in Iraq?

What are we trying to win?

What are we trying to accomplish?

What are we winning?

Where is the honor in fighting in Iraq when we invaded on false pretenses?

What is the mission we are trying to accomplish?

We used the names and the lives who were lost on 9/11 in vain to validate a dishonorable war in

Iraq.

What are We doing America?

Why have we lost sight of our true American Ways?

When will America act like America and have the unity that makes us the “United” States?

We all must be able to compromise on our views,feelings, and opinions in order to do good for the Whole.

“He who exercises government by means of his virtue may be compared to the north polar star, which keeps its place and all the stars turn towards it. “- Confucius

We as a Nation must grow together as one. Since the days of our founding fathers we have been

the light of the world’s horizon and to ensure that our light shines into the future collectively as

one we must resound the voices of liberty across the world.

Wake Up America.

- William Gilbert, Jr.

Dear America

Dear America,

“For time and the world do not stand still. Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or the present are certain to miss the future. “- John Fitzgerald Kennedy

We have come to a time in American History, where the hour of change is at hand for every American citizen. It is now apparent that we as Americans have allowed the past administration to neglect the very nation we hold so true. Under the administrations past have allowed our troops to fight for honor in a dishonorable war and our economy slip into economic peril. For far too many years we have bled our economy with two wars and as a result we have lost jobs for hard working Americans, neglected our infrastructure , and crippled our credit market. We have fed the bellies of fats cats in Washington and Wall Street to the point that the entire U.S. economy is suffering from economic starvation.

“Don’t forget what I discovered that over ninety percent of all national deficits from 1921 to 1939 were caused by payments for past, present, and future wars.” -Franklin D. Roosevelt

The war in Iraq alone has unmercifully bled our economy dry and set of a chain reaction of economic calamity across the entire globe. The Iraqi war was founded on false and dishonorable pretenses and has adversely strained our alliances across the world. Many believe that if we stay in Iraq that somehow we can win a fruitless war and leave with our dignity and honor. Yet, the reality is that we must admit and apologize for our dishonorable intrusion of Iraq ,for that is the true honorable way. The definition of Honor is as stated: honesty, fairness, or integrity in one’s beliefs and actions. A nation with honor is a nation who is honest in it’s values to be truthful to its people and the world. A nation with honor has the fairness to allow other nations to live in peace and prosperity. A nation with true honor is a nation with integrity, integrity to admit to their mistakes and take pride in correcting them. This America is Honor.

The past five years of war has severely wounded the American economy and to heal these wounds we must end our campaign in Iraq. The economic hemorrhaging of the Iraq war has crippled this great nation and strained our foreign stance in the world. We as a nation must unify under our founding principles of Liberty and Freedom to restore our glory and democracy.

“I am concerned about the whole man. I am concerned about what the people, using their government as an instrument and a tool, can do toward building the whole man, which will mean a better society and a better world. “- Lyndon B. Johnson

Together as a nation we must mature in to one and at this time in America we have lost sight of the unity that made us into a nation. For America to survive the test of time must open our minds and allow the bells of liberty ring into the 21st Century.
Sincerely,

William Gilbert, Jr.

The case for Kokoism!

If you’re like me, you’re downright fed up with the same old stuff from the Democratic and Republican Parties, who run under the banner of change, but who will only let us down once again with the same timid decision making! Now, there’s a party for us! In honor of Think Youth’s good friend, Koko Chassid, a new political party has been formed: The Kokoist Party!

The Kokoist Party of America is truly a party of changed policy. In fact, it changes its position on policy every ten minutes. Which other political party can say that?! Read on for more information about the Kokoist platform, as well as some exciting news about the groundwork being laid for a strong Kokoist run at the White House in 2008!

Kokoist Party Platform

1. The Kokoist Party of America believes that all men are created equal, except Ron Paul is way more awesome than anyone else!
2. The Kokoist Party of America believes in a small government. In fact, the entire federal government should be able to fit inside of a road-side hot dog stand. If it cannot, it is too large!
3. The Kokoist Party of America believes in healthcare for all, and then it doesn’t, and then it does again.
4. The Kokoist Party of America believes strongly in animal rights, such as the rights of animals to be used as subjects in bloodsports.
5. The Kokoist Party of America believes in an end to the war on drugs. We are spending resources in the pursuit of casual drug users that could be better used fighting the real threat to American society: Michael Savage haters.
6. The Kokoist Party of America believes that every child should have access to Sean Hannity’s delightful and informative radio program!
7. The Kokoist Party believes that global warming is man made, and that the men making it should get tax cuts and SUVs.

Kokoist Party in 2008

The Kokoist Party of America is pleased to announce that, despite our relatively recent formation, we have already fielded a presidential ticket to run in the 2008 general election! This is a big step in the right direction. Go below the fold for an exclusive first-look at the 2008 Kokoist ticket!

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A Greater Appreciation for Peace

Eric Hall hailed from the fine city of Jeffersonville, Indiana. Jeffersonville is a city located on the Ohio River, just north of Louisville, Kentucky. “Jeff”, as its inhabitants have affectionately termed it, is part of Clark County, which was named for General George Rogers Clark (brother of William Clark of the Lewis & Clark expedition). The city of Jeffersonville itself was named for Thomas Jefferson, whose grid design was used as the layout for the city. Some of the localities that Eric Hall grew up with, in Jeffersonville, are Schimpff’s Confectionary (where you can get some of the best chocolate in the country, in my opinion), the Howard Steamboat Museum, and Mick’s Lounge (where the Papa John’s pizza restaurant chain was founded). Eric went to school at Jeffersonville High School, and he graduated from it in 2002. A little while after graduating high school, Eric joined the United States Army, as did many others from small towns where there were few opportunities. He found himself in favor of the goals of the Iraq War and desirous of contributing to the cause. My cousin went to the same school (from first grade through high school) and was friends with Eric, and that is how I first became aquainted with the story of Eric Hall’s Post Traumatic Stress disorder and the events resulting from it.

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Patriotism: An Idea, Not a Doctrine

The Pledge of Allegiance is a lie, and so I no longer repeat it’s word, forgetting what it says. But even though I no longer utter those thirty words. But I still do love my country, and am willing to die for the freedoms it promises. Here is what the allegiance says, and why I believe I can’t truthfully repeat it’s words:

I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America

If I’m a Christian American, which a later part assumes, shouldn’t I only be pledging allegiance to God, much less a inanimate object? That part is starting to sound like idol worship.

and to the Republic for which it stands,

I Can’t align myself with the Republic part, because Americans are smart enough to pick their own candidates in a Democratic form of government. But for the country it stands behind, I’ll ally myself with it.

one Nation under God,

Really, we’re one nation under God? I suppose that’s why most Americans don’t even try to live by the Ten Commandments.

indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

The last part can only be called bullshit. Considering this thing was written during slavery, I don’t know how anyone could recite those lies back then. And even with the end of slavery, and the end of wide spread segregation, liberty and justice are only for some. For example, victims of the Jena 6 case appear to be getting justice, but in a country with liberty and justice for all, why did it have to become a national headline, with protests all around America, for the so called “justice system” to do right?

What prompted me writing this, is the flap that Obama is getting for not wearing his flag pin. There are many ways to show your patriotism. From reforming America to make the pledge less a lie, to serving your country in times of war. In fact John McCain says he doesn’t always where a flag pin “Because his record shows his patriotism.”

Patriotism and Public Service

Since 2001, it seems that Republicans have had a monopoly on patriotism, or at least that’s the way they’ve succeeded in portraying it. But how exactly do they define patriotism? If patriotism means caving into fear mongers and seeing who can hate “the terrorists” more, then conservatives are pretty damn patriotic. But the way I see it, patriotism is about more than just talk. If you really love your country, then you ought to be able to make a few sacrifices to show it.
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