Current mood:	frustrated
Current music:	Dead Kennedys, 'California Uber Alles'

I'd like, if I may, to give my thoughts on the current status of the race to the White House.

I used those words to begin my opening address to my Cadets on the night of 9/11. I'm not going to try and transcript the whole speech I made, since it's a while ago now, but it all boiled down to a simple enough idea: America needs us. On that day, at that moment, had George W Bush stood behind his podium and called upon world leaders to unite against the ephemeral and mysterious Threat of Terror, all men and women of reasonable natures would gladly have thrown in their lot with the United States - under George Wubya, at that - and done all that was reasonably within their power to assist the world's greatest nation as it came to terms with the horrific events that happened on that day. The shadowy theories regarding Bush's election aside, since I'm not going to bother trying to convince any Republicans or justify any Democrats (you have your opinions; I'm not going to demand you change them), the combined weight of the world would have been with the United States.

Instead, we have this.

America, I sincerely hope that it's clear we, the rest of the world, do not hate Americans. Americans and what they stand for are essentially very nice people, and nice ideals. Truth, liberty and justice for all. That sounds pretty good to me, and I know that if I believed in those tenets, then the US would be a pretty attractive place to live. But look at what's happened in the past four years. Step back and look objectively. In four years, the threat of terrorism has risen, rather than fallen worldwide. What were formerly her closest allies have all but severed ties with America - and rather than George Wubya trying to repair the diplomatic damage done between nations like France (hell, most of Europe except for England), he instead decides on this bloody minded go-it-alone approach. Don't even get me started on Halliburton, the Saudi Royal Family and so forth...

I'm sad that it could come to this. That the great nation of the United States of America could be reduced to this - a bickering conglomerate of upper- and lower-classes, the rich against the poor, the black against the white, the north against the south... all over the man they want to run the country. Exercising your right to vote does not make you right. Exercising your right to free speech does not give you the right to abuse those who disagree with you. Exercising your right to bear arms does not give you the right, nor as George Wubya seems to impress upon his supporters, the duty to bear them in other nations on their behalf.

I move that the USA not be known as such any longer. The States are not united. America, you stand on the edge. Wars have been fought for less. You've already fought one civil war. Leave it at that.

Edit: In a more light-hearted tone, I quote Professor Membrane. "The time for choosing is now!"