by Marlene Bricker

Created on: May 19, 2009   Last Updated: May 21, 2009

What happened to America? When did it change from "the land of the free and the home of the brave," to the land of disenchantment? When did it change to a land almost void of a middle class with homeless people sleeping in the street? When did it stop caring about the needs of American citizens?

This seems to be the end of the era of America as the number one world power. If we look at the state of the country at this very moment in time, what exactly do we see? We see a tired, worn military with more wars than manpower to fight them. The banking industry is holding on to their assets which is stopping the flow of commerce. The American car industry is almost non existent and the housing market has tanked. The Dow is down over forty percent from it's high and the NASDAQ is down more than sixty percent from it's high.

These issues certainly weigh heavily on the state of America. Yet, there is even a more insidious issue. The problems this great country is facing now, surfaced because of the massive greed that has permeated our government and corporations. Who brought down Enron? It was brought to it's knees by the greed of the management. Who brought down Wall Street? It was brought to it's knees by the greed of the brokers and executives? What about the housing market? It was brought down by the greed of the mortgage brokers and the sub prime phenomenon. The car industry wanted people to "buy American" but refused to create vehicles that would provide better mileage, better warranties, and better cafe standards.

Now, let's look at our government. What ever happened to "of the people, by the people, for the people?" We have created a system of life time, wealthy Congressmen and Senators. They go to Washington and pass legislation that will help them get re-elected. That seems to be the goal. They are willing to be influenced by lobbyists and take incentives when offered. It seems as though they have completely forgotten the term "public servant."

If we assess these issues, is there any wonder at the change we see in our country? In order to return to the place of a world power America needs to mend it's ways. It must begin to care about the large percentage of citizens that are not independently wealthy. It must begin to care about the working poor and all of the millions of people that cannot afford health care. There are many issues that must be addressed. The one thing they all have in common is greed.

The outlook for America depends on it's willingness to change. We must get to the point where we are willing to at least explore "love your neighbor as yourself." Until we begin to care about all of the citizens, we will not continue to be the most admired country in the world. In order to be admired, you must behave admirably. My hope is that America will reflect and redirect so it once again can lead the world in a moral and ethical manner.

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