sad state of affairs
This country is going down the toilet. The values that we preach and trumpet around the world aren’t even our values anymore.
Recently, a poll was released that showed that the majority of the US was against the war in Iraq, and that Bush’s ratings had dropped into the lower 40s. The White House responded by saying that President Bush didn’t make his decisions based on polls, he made his decisions based on his values (ie, faith).
Translation: our country is an elected monarchy. Once in office, our president can do whatever he wants no matter what the people want. What’s that? Your high school history book says that we’re a democracy?
How about this one: the House has recently passed a constitutional amendment that bans desecration to the American flag, e.g. flag burning. That’s right, an amendment to the constitution of the United States that will take away one of your freedoms. Why?
I’m sorry, but no matter how much you try to invoke emotions by mentioning the 9/11 attacks, enforced patriotism is not patriotism at all. What’s next? Outlaw criticism of the president? Hasn’t the republican party already accused people not supportive of the war in Iraq of being ‘unpatriotic’?
But forget the enforced patriotism point, we’re talking about destroying the foundations of the first amendment. We’re creating an exception. I guess like any other rule, even unalienable rights have an exception.
June 23rd, 2005 at 2:15 pm
I seem to remember a Daily Show joke (which is becoming less and less of a joke) in which the Bush administration’s attitude is “If you’re not going to like what I’m about to say, I’ll go ahead and add the words ‘9/11′ to anything I say, and that means shut the hell up.”