On Election Eve

I worry about us. I don't see the country heading in the right direction. I shouldn't be so pessimistic (so my wife tells me), but I think that the bigger picture of what's happening is not as dismissable as some would like to portray it. We're becoming a welfare state. We blame our problems on the 'fat cats,' as if they have some sort of greedy magic wand which takes from us our rightful share of earnings we did not help create.

My dilemma as of late is the ideology which is beginning to plague this nation: A sense of entitlement to that which is not ours. Who says that the wealth created by individuals and institutions is the property of the state and should somehow be redistributed to the masses as a means of helping them achieve the same success? The Constitution of this nation protects the property which we come to obtain. Who says that I even want, as a low income American, to receive these ill-gotten goods? Who tells me how I should live every aspect of mine and my family's life? I certainly don't want the bloated, corrupt, deficient bureaucrats telling me how I should run my family, or who I should look to for "Change."

But I must confess, I have hope. This hope doesn't come from ill-prepared, or misguided, corrupt politicians with ulterior motives. This hope doesn't come from the State. This hope doesn't come from the tax cuts which vary from year to year. This hope doesn't come from throwing morality under the bus, in the name of "tolerance."

This hope COMES from knowing that we live in a country that has guaranteed its citizens the right to vote. I stood in line for 1 1/2 hours to vote last week (that's longer than Oprah!), and for every moment in that line, I thought to myself how proud I am to be an American, and to be surrounded by all types of Americans, voting for a new president; how proud I am to let my voice be heard in this great country of Freedom.

On a side note, this thought was in my mind today as I ate lunch:
What do you call a conservative protester? A homophobic, intolerant, racist bigot.
What do you call a liberal protester? An advocate of first amendment rights.

Yeah, kind of tounge in cheek; but ain't it the truth?

Happy Ballot Casting tomorrow! May we be wise in our decision for the new direction of this country, I HOPE.