by Stephen D. Wilson

Created on: March 18, 2008   Last Updated: September 09, 2008

As an American, I can tell you that there are few countries that have the pride that my country embraces. We have an all volunteer fighting force, and also the best trained. Those are things to be proud of. We are a world power, one that can cause countries to pause before continuing down a war like path. That being said, we need to take care of home first, and foremost.

Recent years, and wars, have shown what kind of damage we can do if we intervene where we weren't invited. We are occupying countries that did not ask for us. We have created terrorists because of our occupation of those countries. They have only one goal, to terrorize both their countrymen and women, but us as well. The sad part of it really is, over 3,000 young people gave their lives for a lie. There are countless stories of how we are trying to help in Iraq, and we are helping. For the most part the citizens like what we have provided. I also want it to be clear, I do support the military, just not our Commander in Chief.

While we have been at this war we have become numb to the violence. The death toll barely makes it into the evening news broadcasts. It isn't that we don't care, we are just tired of being the worlds police force.

We need to refocus on what is important, our country. Our schools are in shambles. Teachers work in fear most of the time, and some have asked if they can carry sidearms in class to protect themselves. Teachers cannot teach under these circumstances. Children of our country cannot tell you who or what our heritage is, they do not know our history. As an example school children don't know the capitals of each state, something we were required to learn, and the date of our states admittance into the United States. Other countries know more about us than we do. Our national debt is higher now than any time in the history of our country, even adjusting for inflation. The homeless are growing, as are the helpless. Our health care system is at best confusing at worse incompetent. Doctors worry more about what kind of insurance a patient has than they are about the patient. Our injured warriors have to suffer through the most confusing bureaucratic mess just to be treated like a person.

The saddest part is, we all know this, and do nothing about it. We say "what a shame" and shake our heads, but we do nothing. We depend on the politicians to solve our problems, but they do nothing. Our once proud and powerful country, a beacon of democracy, is rapidly changing into a shell of its former self. We all wait for the other guy to do something, the other guy is waiting for you do to something.

We want to be the police for democratic reforms, bring our way of life to people in all countries, no matter if we are asked or not. We hold others responsible for human rights violations, yet we condone torture. One of the greatest things other countries admired about us, was how we treated our enemies. We did not stoop to their level, we treated them with respect and dignity, and in turn our men and women were treated better.

My father used to tell me, "Don't go messing around with someone else's house till yours is in order." That is true today as it was in the 70's. Our house is crumbling on it's foundation. We cannot afford to not focus on ourselves for a time, shore up our house. Then, if all is well with us, other countries will follow our example. That is how we can solve problems in the world, at least some of them.

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