"way back when," our nation had a president by the name of george w. bush. granted, as a president, he was as respected as most presidents can be; usually meaning everyone likes him when things go "their way," and talk crap about how he's the crappiest thing since tax reform when things aren't going "as planned," so-called "campaign promises" are not being executed, etc. an example of this "fair-weather" bush support was strongly apparent after the inexcusable tragedies of 9/11/2001. shortly thereafter, the country went crazy for george w. he was a hero. he was the one that was going to bring our country, our people, our victims, justice by sending our troops to war, and we were going to catch, torture, kill the terrorists because that is exactly what they deserve. remember this? that seemed to be common theme that the majority agreed on at the time. i even teared at the state of the union address after these events when our military was honored, as they rightly should (always) be, and 9/11 was relived in new security bills, promises of safety at domestic airports, terrorist threat levels given colors that took on entire new meanings. who would have ever thought it would come to this?
as i recall, however, by the end of the "bush era," america was all but throwing him out of the white house second floor window. why? many reasons that i am not going into in full detail-- some i do not know and others are just too much-- but some of these complaints certainly had to do with issues of justice. why can't all persons have the right to marry? why are we still over there? people asked. why can i not have dominion over my own body? women asked. why do our men and women continue to die? why aren't we stepping in to stop genocide in the sudan, darfur, and uganda? for what purpose are we even still fighting? why are our own people still in poverty? and my "favorite"... where the heck is osama bin laden?? (i'm still wondering this) it is so intriguing to me how quickly "our hero" became a villain, when all emotions subsided, and the struggles and consequences of every day life still remained.
don't get me wrong here, i am not downplaying 9/11 or that homeland security, airline restrictions, and all other safety decisions were not for the best, nor am i saying that military or other victims of these tragedies died in vain. my looming question is: what about the rest of the story? what about the first responders of that day that are dying of, essentially, "black lung," (from the ash) and are being denied health insurance? what about the loved ones left behind that are not receiving the government compensation, recognition, or benefits they, too, were promised? there is absolutely no excuse for this. there is absolutely no reason for someone who risked their life and their families for our country to be denied justice when it becomes their turn to need care. there is no excuse for families of military (or ex-military, ex-firefighters, etc.) to be living in, for lack of a better word, straight poverty.
essentially, in a few months' time, we turned "our hero" into a villain, and many heroes/victims of 9/11, and elsewhere, into third-class american citizens.
transition with me to 2006 to present.
i recently posted a quote by the artist/singer/songwriter "pink" on facebook from her song, "dear mr. president," that was written about her internal dilemmas during the time period previously mentioned, yet i believe is applicable in situations-- past and present, political and not-- to be reminded to put our lives, yours and mine, the somewhat "privileged" (in different ways), in perspective with what really goes on in the streets of america, behind closed doors, on the floor of the house, and in the minds of those that don't know-- and most likely will never truly know-- anything of, to quote miss "pink," "rebuilding your house after the bombs took it away;" "building your bed out of a cardboard box;" or "minimum wage with a baby on the way." my point, simply put, was, as "pink" says, "we don't know nothin' 'bout hard work."
now, let me first point out that facebook has been, and will continue to be, a platform for first amendment rights. every person on this platform, i believe, is entitled to his/her opinion whatever that may be-- though at times i have seen some of the most demeaning, inappropriate, "scary-that-these-people-are-the future-of-our-country," straight ignorant comments/posts/statuses, etc. granted, i let that be (most of the time) because he/she is entitled to that opinion, but if i honestly just can't keep my mouth (or fingers) shut, i will simply point out that one may want to study that "fact" a little further on their own, from factual sources because of the enormous bias or heresay it portrays (that is not always truthful). i will point out, also, that i often post, what can be viewed as, "social justice" or "politically-based" quotes, articles, opinions, etc. but as does everyone else.
after the "pink" quote was posted, there were some comments made to me about the lyrics, particularly about "pink's" entitlement (with her "multi-millionaire" status) to sing/write anything about hardwork or gaps in our "system" because, obviously, as a singer/songwriter she knows nothing first-hand of these inequalities. well, neither do you or i, but i write about social injustices and use my "entitlements" to facebook and the internet to have my opinions heard in the hopes of raising awareness, making people think (or rethink), or just so they have something to read when they're bored and browsing facebook. whatever the case may be, i find it interesting, and quite unfair, that i was berated for quoting "pink," who, i would like to point out, is actually using her "fame" to raise awareness about real issues that always need to be addressed (and readdressed with the changing times)-- human rights, government vs. the people, poverty, war, education-- it's all there in the song. what is so wrong with allowing "pink" to sing of issues that matter, though she may know nothing about, but tries to use herself for good, yet plastered all over facebook are the posted opinions of legislators right now making decisions for our-- you, i, our families, our friends, our future-- well-being, markedly health care, and they, too, know nothing about "being without." these men and women have no idea-- nor will they ever-- of standing in line at social security, unemployment, food stamps or soup kitchens, waiting years for any type of insurance, the embarassment of using the emergency room for primary care, not knowing how to pay next month's rent, not knowing if their children will eat at night or the next day or the next. we-- all of us reading this (because obviously you have access to internet, a computer, have the education to read, and comprehension to push the button to the link of my rantings) have absolutely no clue what people go through day in and day out in our society-- not even our neighbors, friends, co-workers, fellow students. therefore, i urge you, us, opinionated folk, think twice because in actuality none of us-- you, i, legislators, commentors, and, yes, even pink, truly have no clue about hard work.
now, let me first point out that facebook has been, and will continue to be, a platform for first amendment rights. every person on this platform, i believe, is entitled to his/her opinion whatever that may be-- though at times i have seen some of the most demeaning, inappropriate, "scary-that-these-people-are-the future-of-our-country," straight ignorant comments/posts/statuses, etc. granted, i let that be (most of the time) because he/she is entitled to that opinion, but if i honestly just can't keep my mouth (or fingers) shut, i will simply point out that one may want to study that "fact" a little further on their own, from factual sources because of the enormous bias or heresay it portrays (that is not always truthful). i will point out, also, that i often post, what can be viewed as, "social justice" or "politically-based" quotes, articles, opinions, etc. but as does everyone else.
after the "pink" quote was posted, there were some comments made to me about the lyrics, particularly about "pink's" entitlement (with her "multi-millionaire" status) to sing/write anything about hardwork or gaps in our "system" because, obviously, as a singer/songwriter she knows nothing first-hand of these inequalities. well, neither do you or i, but i write about social injustices and use my "entitlements" to facebook and the internet to have my opinions heard in the hopes of raising awareness, making people think (or rethink), or just so they have something to read when they're bored and browsing facebook. whatever the case may be, i find it interesting, and quite unfair, that i was berated for quoting "pink," who, i would like to point out, is actually using her "fame" to raise awareness about real issues that always need to be addressed (and readdressed with the changing times)-- human rights, government vs. the people, poverty, war, education-- it's all there in the song. what is so wrong with allowing "pink" to sing of issues that matter, though she may know nothing about, but tries to use herself for good, yet plastered all over facebook are the posted opinions of legislators right now making decisions for our-- you, i, our families, our friends, our future-- well-being, markedly health care, and they, too, know nothing about "being without." these men and women have no idea-- nor will they ever-- of standing in line at social security, unemployment, food stamps or soup kitchens, waiting years for any type of insurance, the embarassment of using the emergency room for primary care, not knowing how to pay next month's rent, not knowing if their children will eat at night or the next day or the next. we-- all of us reading this (because obviously you have access to internet, a computer, have the education to read, and comprehension to push the button to the link of my rantings) have absolutely no clue what people go through day in and day out in our society-- not even our neighbors, friends, co-workers, fellow students. therefore, i urge you, us, opinionated folk, think twice because in actuality none of us-- you, i, legislators, commentors, and, yes, even pink, truly have no clue about hard work.
