I love my country and I’m not ashamed to admit it.
I was raised in an era where the Pledge of Allegiance was recited immediately after roll call in the classroom. No one ever considered not standing and paying respect to the symbol of the greatest country on Earth.
My God, have times changed.
The U.S. government is being vilified and blamed for every disaster – from the horrific acts of Sept. 11 to the failed levees in Louisiana and the deadly turmoil in the Middle East, where people blow up their neighbors every day in the name of whatever faction they believe in.
I can understand the vitriolic hatred from our enemies, but the anti-American sentiments from my own countrymen are simply stunning.
America was founded on freedom of choice. From religion to politics, we have been given options. One of the things that made us great was our ability to accept that even if our own political party wasn’t the one in charge, we were still a country of one. The president, no matter what his party affiliation, was still given respect as the leader of the free world. The country was like a large family: We might argue, disagree on certain issues, and even fervently protest for change, but never would we air our dirty laundry to anyone on the outside.
The saying “United we stand, divided we fall” has obviously been forgotten by an alarming number of entertainers-turned-activists.
Actor Danny Glover was recently filmed smiling as he stood with an arm draped over the shoulder of Hugo Chavez, the tyrannical president of Venezuela. Chavez is a man who had the audacity to stand on American soil and call our leader Satan. What was even more disturbing was the applause Chavez received after making this outrageous comment.
And actor Sean Penn must think his acting career – ranging from a drugged, dazed surfer to a crooked cop – has somehow boosted his IQ and allows him to see all that is wrong with our country, which he then gleefully shares with any foreign entity hostile to America.
It is disheartening to turn on the TV or open a paper and see more of these famous movie-star activists standing on foreign soil denigrating the very country that made them wealthy. They proclaim their hatred and disdain for a man whom Americans legally elected – twice – to the highest office in the land.
How in the world can we ever defend ourselves from outside enemies when the real threat comes from within? We can’t control our borders, and the cut-in-line lawbreakers are constantly portrayed as victims. Airport screeners search old ladies with blue hair and flowered luggage, yet ignore the nervous-acting young man of obvious Middle East descent with no checked bags, because no one wants to be accused of racial profiling.
I am not a genius and I don’t have a college degree, but I can read the writing on the wall. The old saying “Those who forget history are doomed to repeat it” scares me to death.
As an Army veteran, I have observed a range of societies, from the extreme liberties of France to the strict, oppressive, religion-driven culture of Middle Eastern countries. But never have I found the freedom we Americans enjoy. Even though our country is supposedly hated around the globe, millions aspire to be here.
I have tried to ignore the blogs and childish bumper-sticker cliches that denounce our president and his administration, but it’s frustrating sometimes. Do these people honestly believe peace, love and impeachment will solve our problems? Do they not realize they are a propaganda billboard and a soundbite for the media broadcasts of our enemies? That their virulent acts of dissention border on treason in a time when our military is engulfed in a job they voluntarily enlisted for and swore to upheld?
If we do not put our partisan beliefs aside and focus on a common goal of country re-unification – while also presenting a united front to the rest of the world – the forces that seek to destroy us will laugh while they rip us apart and revel in our death throes.
Like the mighty Roman Empire that fell, I fear America will someday exist only in the pages of a history book.
Billie Louden (loudenview@aol.com) is a deputy sheriff and an Army veteran.
