I tried to resist it. I really, really tried. But, try as I might, the pull was just too strong like a riptide in the ocean. What the heck am I talking about you might ask? Alcohol? Drugs?
No, I am most assuredly not an alcoholic or a drug addict. Of course, I’m referring to politics or more specifically blogging about politics.
A few months ago I declared a voluntary hiatus from blogging about politics. The news was just too upsetting. Day after day we were being bombarded relentlessly with horrific news stories. Random, wanton violence, carjackings, innocent children being shot in their homes, or worse, their beds, muggings in the subways where bystanders look away afraid to intercede, or worse merely watch and record the crimes on their cellphones, mobs ransacking businesses at will, perpetrators of crimes going unpunished, our jails being turned into a revolving door where perpetrators are being released without bail faster than the arresting officer can even complete the paperwork, illegal migrants pouring over our borders as if it were a turnstile, a two-tier justice system in which one’s political viewpoint determines the extent to which the authorities seek to prosecute, a president who is an embarrassment, who acts not like a strong take-charge leader but rather a doddering old uncle that you hide in the attic when company visits so he won’t embarrass you and furthermore, gets a free pass from most of the media, and don’t even get me started on the vice president who has continually demonstrated that she is both ignorant and lazy.
Right now my liberal (excuse me, “progressive “) friends are thinking, enough ranting. Where are your facts. You need to back this up with facts. No… I don’t. This is not a debate. This is not a court of law. I don’t have convince anyone I’m right. This is a blog, my blog. I am expressing my opinion. To paraphrase the late singer Leslye Gore “it’s my blog, and I can write what I want to.”
Whew! Writing the foregoing has made me feel better already. This is better than therapy and cheaper than paying a psychiatrist. When I woke up this morning I was angry, frustrated, and depressed about everything going on in the country. Now I feel refreshed and ready to tackle the day. I feel like that actor in Network who opened his window and bellowed “I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore. “
Conclusion
All kidding and sarcasm aside, our country is in trouble, real, deep, serious trouble. We are dealing with existential threats from both external and internal forces. Our very way of life is being threatened and half the country is ignorant and/or oblivious to it. They get their news from biased sources that slant, omit or exaggerate the news to reflect their own political agendas.
Our country’s critics are out of control. The anonymity of social media has give them license to do and say whatever they want without regard for facts and truth and no fear of counterargument.
Moreover, they have a revisionist attitude. They view life through the rear window rather than the windshield. They denigrate our Founding Fathers and other historical figures with impunity without any regard for the facts or historical context. They’re more concerned with who owned slaves 300 years ago rather than with what China, Russia, Iran and our other enemies are doing to us today.
No, the US is not perfect. It has flaws that should be and are being addressed. But, name me a better country. Where else would you prefer to live? Would the members of the so-called “squad” prefer to live in, for example, Saudi Arabia where women have virtually no rights? (If so, I know several people who would be happy to buy their plane tickets – one-way, of course.)
There’s a reason why millions of people desperately want to come here. We were all lucky to have been born in the US. We won the genetic lottery. Let’s start showing that we are deserving of that good fortune. It’s time to wake up or else we will be leaving our grandchildren an empty shell of a country.
Now, as political commentator Mark Levin would say, “That’s it. I’m done.”
Now it’s your turn. How do you feel? Agree? Disagree? No opinion? Not interested? I invite your comments.
We Built It Blog by Larry Jacob 