In Order to Become a More Perfect Union…
“Land ho!” cries the watchman from the crow’s nest. After several antagonizing months, the settlers aboard the Mayflower give a cheer of happiness as they look past the sea ready to embrace their new home. We ask ourselves, who were these people – these “Pilgrims” – who dared make this treacherous journey from England to the New World? Were they kings, duchesses, barons, or priests? The answer is no; every one of them were ordinary citizens who were motivated by their beliefs and desires for a better life free of religious persecution. This is the same spirit that drives America today; each and every American citizen has praxis of an everyday routine involving his or her occupations, families, and hobbies. When we look back to the pre-Industrial era and compare with today’s postmodern technological era, we regard this hard-won progress with a sense of accomplishment. After all, it was the dyslexic Thomas Edison who first invented the incandescent light bulb, the anti-Semitic Henry Ford who invented the assembly line, and the polio-crippled Franklin Delano Roosevelt who led our nation through the calamitous times of the Great Depression and World War II. They are the epitomes of men with different handicaps, different views, and different motivations that all strived to make life better for present and future Americans. Now then, what has become of our glorious nation today? We are currently in the midst of an economic trough with no intention of climbing out from the mire. We are also currently fighting a war with a nation on the other side of the world all the while mounting a national debt. Lastly, we face battle from Mother Nature as consequences for neglecting our natural environment. Where is that spirit that once pushed us to the edge of our limits in order to solve the problems of society? Who is willing to step up and solve all of America’s problems? Americans are still waiting for that person or group of people....