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Date: July 12, 2008 at 05:27:45
From: Unknown
Subject: Commentary: What's right with America? Plenty


Found this article I thought was very interesting. Don't agree with all that is said but does stand to reason on a lot of issue's. Take time to read it. God bless each one of you.

This article says that America doesn't deserve to
celebrate it's independence this year. It claims that all our atrocities have shamed the memory of our founding fathers, and as a result, should cancel our parades, put away our fireworks, and all sit quietly while we atone for our sins. I guess that is one way to go.
Another way to go would be to fire up the grills, bring the kid's to the beach, and gather the family on a blanket to watch your tax dollars ignite into colorful bursts.
I'm guessing that most of us choose the second option.
But just because I had fun with friends and family doesn't mean I believe America is perfect. It just means for one day, I chose to celebrate the fact that America is still closer to perfect than any other country in the history of the world.
For 364 days a year we talk about high gas prices, crooked politicians, and how much people from one political party allegedly hate everyone from the other. But for 24 hours we all get to put it aside and marvel at how a few brave men risked their lives to stand up for what they believed in. Of course, I would prefer we celebrate that everyday.
Lot's of people talk about our problems, an their's nothing wrong with that, so long as you also occasionally take the time to talk about the other side. So ask yourself the question, "What's right with America'?
Let's start with our much maligned economey. I'm not trying to sugarcoat it, times are tough for an awful lot of families right now. But you know what? We've made it through a depression, we've made it through wars, oil shocks, a major terriosts attacks, and were still standing. In fact were not just standing, were towering over the rest of the world.
Our economy is almost as big as the next four largest economies on Earth,( Japan, Germany, China, and Great Britian)combined. The state of California alone has an economy as large as the entire country of France. Illinois has a GDP as all of Mexico. New York matches the GDP of all Brazil. Florida's economy is as large as South Korea's. Texas has a GDP roughly equal to Canada's. Michigan's economy is as large as the country of Argentina.
It takes longer to turn around an aircraft carrier,than it does a dinghy, but the problem we have is with our ship's captain. The brains in Washington, not the ship's crew.
What's right with America? How about the way we educate our children. I complain alot about left wing professors, and how some private universities hoard their billions while charging obscene amounts for tuition, but the truth is that our universities are ranked about the best in the world.
Students are not fleeing America to go to college in Japan, China, or India its the other way
around. You don't have to have an elite family name or Rockfeller type wealth to get in. We don't care about race, your gender, or nationally. You just have to be smart enough and work hard for it. What a concept, huh?
What's right with America? How about the way we treat the less fortunate? With no help from our government, Americans gave a total of $306 billion to charities alone. We give twice as much as the next closest country and relative to the size of our economies we give a 1000 percent more than the French.
What's right with America? It's not just the wealthy that are generious. Two thirds of American families making over 100,000 a year give to charities. Compassion is ingrained in our culture like no other.
What's right with America? How about are supposedly third world-health care system. We spend more on Health care per person than any other country in the world. Do we still have problems? Absolutely, but don't fall for the "grass is greenier" crowd, every country has health care problems.
What's right with America? We love our country. World Values survey found that 77 percent of Americans are proud of their nationality. That put's us in a first place tie with the Irish. Austraila was next and no one else was even close.
The point is we don't need the often so wished for change in this country, we just need perspective. While most of us inherently know that we've won the lottery by living here, we don't often think about the reasons why.
So for at least that one day, lets just remember that America still leads the world in principles that matter most. The rule of law, freedom of religion, equal rights, freedom from an oppresive government and freedom of speech.

Hope you enjoyed my little fingers are tired of typing...LOL.. Love you all.


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