I'm scared for our country. Truly concerned... not trying to exaggerate or be overly paranoid, but I'm worried for the country that my kids are growing up in.
Unlike many others, my concern is not because Obama is President. I don't like everything he's done, hasn't done, or plans to do/not to do... but I don't think that he alone will be the downfall of America. Our country has survived much worse and came out stronger for it. We've survived scandals, wars, domestic unrest... and we typically learn from them and move forward.
No, I'm concerned for what seems to be the chaism in our country. It seems that so many Americans fall into one category or another.
Some are completely apathetic about the political process. They don't vote, don't pay attention to legislation, don't know who their leaders are or what their actual jobs are, don't know what the Consitution actually provides us, and don't really care to find out. That worries me. I see so many Facebook posts and (even more scary) articles that expect leaders to do things that aren't within their powers. As a social science teacher, it makes me feel like my profession fails our young people. We don't do a good enough job. We help high school seniors learn enough to pass a standardized test and check a graduation requirement box... but we don't teach them to appreciate or really understand the country that they live in. In many schools, students get a little over 3 months to learn how their government functions. I'm not sure colleges are much better... seeing as my PoliSci class in college wasn't much more than a glorified high school class (sorry CSUB :().
The other side are people who are so entrenched in their political party that they can't step back to see the forest for the trees. I'm reminded of House and Senate members who have promised to vote "no" on anything supported by the President, regardless of its merit, simply to discredit him. There are democratic leaders who have stunchly refused to compromise with Republicans on anything, period. That is not the point of government. Our representative democracy only works when those we vote into office are mature enough to examine each piece of legislation for its merit and benefit to constituants... not to simply vote along party lines and brag about it. That's laziness at its worst.
I feel like America has become extremely spoiled... we don't appreciate the blessing we have to be able to vote our officials into office. We disrespect the process by throwing a hissy fit when the guy we wanted doesn't get sworn in. We refuse to watch our leaders speak on TV simply because we don't like them... instead of respecting the process and appreciating that our leaders were elected by the people. We decide to throw a tantrum for 4 years until its time to try again... refusing to move the country forward or make progress because we can't have it our way.
It becomes even more offensive when Christianity is used to defend our disrespect. A year ago, a Kansas Representative sent an e-mail to others in the House asking them to pray that our President is killed and that his wife be left widowed and his daughters orphaned. His reasoning? Psalm 109. We now have leaders who serve at a Federal level misusing scripture and taking it out of context to justify hate and evil... simply because we disagree with the President.
So yes... I'm concerned for my country. Not because I worry about the action our country may soon take on weapons. Not because our President may restructure health care or raise taxes on some. I worry because I think we've lost sight of the big picture. We're passing down to our children the idea that if we don't like someone in authority, it's okay to say horrible things about them... that if we can't have what we want, we just throw a temper tantrum until it's time to try again... that if we don't like someone in authority we should just ignore them because they aren't deserving of our attention and respect.
I really pray that we, as a nation (and I include myself in this), realize how blessed we are and follow the Scriptures which so clearly tell us to respect our authorities and show Jesus' love to everyone around us, regardless of political affiliation or lifestyle choice.
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