The Kind-Hearted Smart Aleck

Whether deserved or not, American-exceptionalism has been a common mindset in the U.S. If you're American, odds are high you feel your country is a bastion for freedom. In our Declaration of Independence, it is said, "All men are created equal." The Constitution declares all men possess freedom of speech and religion. Even the final line in the country's anthem is "the land of the free." Well, as I sit here today, I can now confidently tell you, all of the aforementioned idealistic rhetoric is pure hokum. America isn't exceptional. America isn't a bastion for freedom. In America, not all men are created equal, let alone women. In America, not everyone possesses freedoms of speech and/or religion. America isn't the land of the free. Sure, roughly half the nation strongly believes in equality for all, but the other half does not, and unfortunately, they have control of the country.  I wanted to believe in the American vision. I wanted to believe in...

After $4 billion was spent this election season and under 38% of eligible voters voted in the midterm elections yesterday, with control of the Senate swapping parties as a result, I think it's safe to say our political system is broken. We can try to call this a democracy all we'd like, but when between roughly 1/3 and 1/2 of eligible voters tend to decide this country's future, and are often times influenced by millions of dollars corporations spend misleading them, I'm sorry, but this isn't a democracy. For the most part, the people no longer decide; money decides. With a big helping hand from the Supreme Court and the Citizen's United ruling, this once proud "democracy" (or republic, I suppose) is becoming an oligarchy, and as sad as it is to say, it appears as if most people don't seem to realize or care about this. Many have given up any hope of having a legitimate voice in the election process, because their voice counts for just one vote, ...