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Voice of the Voter - This Week's Stories

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This page updates every other Wednesday

A New Day Dawns in America

"On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.

On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics.

…In reaffirming the greatness of our nation, we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned."

Barack H. Obama
President of the United States of America


Tuesday January 20, 2009 Barack H. Obama was sworn in as the 44th President of the United States of America. With millions of people watching around the world President Obama called on people across the nation and around the world to come together to form a new humanity united in a purpose of peace and prosperity. He called upon our better angels to work for unity and to put aside the hatreds and bigotries of the past so that we can all be better for it. Unequivocally rejecting ideas of the past that people must give up our freedoms for the security of our nation President Obama gave notice that this new administration will not give way to the politics of fear and division.

In a message directed to other world leaders President Obama made it clear that his plans include a willingness to talk to both friends and enemies of the past to find solutions to the world’s problems and bring peace and prosperity to the entire world. Though the speech was only eighteen minutes it carried strong messages of change and a rejection of failed ideas of the past. As Dr. Phil might say “How’s that been working for you?” might be best seen as one of the central themes of President Obama’s speech. Clearly rejecting many of the central themes of the Bush administration Obama vowed to take our nation in a new direction including international policies that put diplomacy ahead of military action.

For the people of America President Obama spoke of much hard work ahead and the need for all of us to get actively involved in the rebuilding of our nation. Recognizing that our economic crisis requires swift and decisive action, he called on Americans to take charge of rebuilding our nation and to put aside our apathy in favor of activism. We are no less able to produce or come up with new ideas than we had been prior to the collapse of our economy. We can find solutions to the problems and must be the ones who ultimately drive the change our nation needs. Our government is a tool to solve problems but not the savior of all lost causes. We the people must take an active role in our prosperity and well being. We hold the keys to our own success in our hands and only if we choose to pick up those keys and use them will we find lasting prosperity.

A new day has dawned in America with a new sense of hope in the vast majority of her people. Now comes the time to begin the work needed to fulfill that hope. Hope can only become change if those who hope make the effort to bring the change. President Barack Obama is the face of our hope and the leader for our change but he cannot do it without our work and dedication. We must do our part to bring the change our nation needs. We must take the time to stay informed about the events of the world and we must tell our leaders when they do those things not in line with the change we need. We must answer the call to help others as we would want their help if we were in need. We must be the instruments of our own revival. We have put the leadership in place to bring about the conditions for change but we the people must do our part to help them succeed.

Click here for full text of inaugural address.

Troy Wilson-Ripsom - Staff Writer | E-mail Comments on this article. | Click icon to Digg this article

We Have A New President, Now What?

For some the inauguration of Barack Obama as the 44th President of the United States is the culmination of a national effort to bring change to the nation. For those of us with some sense of history it is merely one step toward healing the wounds of the past eight years and beyond. One man can be a symbol to the world and one man can bring about changes at some level that allow for real change to occur but one man cannot solve all of the problems facing America.

At the heart of our nation’s problems is a lack of commitment on the part of her citizens to do the hard work to maintain a democracy. The American people have sit idly by and let many of the things adversely impacting us now happen. We have allowed monstrous things to be done in our name and have not held our leaders accountable for their failures until the failures became so evident that they could not be ignored.

There was no broad outcry from the people when Guantanamo prisoners were held without legal counsel or given any civil rights shortly after 9/11. It was a few people who even questioned the legitimacy of the “enemy combatant” designation for Guantanamo prisoners. Only after widespread media coverage of the issues surrounding Guantanamo did a larger number of people question the legitimacy of the actions being taken there. Americans just weren’t paying attention or were willing to excuse the abandonment of our principles for some measure of revenge against a faceless enemy known as the “terrorists”.

When our congressional leaders passed legislation deregulating banks and investment firms opening the door to people with essentially no verifiable income being lent hundreds of thousands of dollars with others being sold investment into those bad loans as a sound plan for the future, we did nothing. We had to but watch the debate on C-SPAN to know what was going on but we didn’t take the time to watch. It wasn’t just our leaders who failed us and allowed our economy to be destroyed by unscrupulous bankers and brokers. It was our failure to keep an eye on our leaders that let this happen.

So now we have a new President and a new bunch of leaders. What will we do with them? Will we blindly trust them or hold them accountable for their actions? Will we stop paying attention again or maybe actually learn from our mistakes this time. I’m happy as hell that Barack Obama is our new President but that is not the end of the road. If we don’t keep an eye on Congress the lobbyists will just keep giving the little guy the shaft while their puppet politicians find new ways to put lipstick on the pig legislation they pass in our name.

We have to stop thinking that we don’t have any say in the matter and start making our voices heard. We need to stop saying that there is nothing we can do about it and get up off our collective asses and get to work fixing things. Maybe none of us individually can fix the world but if we all stop acting like the world just happens and get involved we will change the world and make it the one we want for our children and theirs.

I know there is more that I can do so I’m going to work on volunteering more and complaining less unless that complaining has purpose and works toward a result. I need to do much less whining about the government while I sit on my butt and much more helping of the people in need that I see every day. That’s what I can do. What can you do?

The Realist - Patriot at Large | E-mail Comments on this article. | Click icon to Digg this article



Get Involved

Do you sit and yell at the TV when politicians come on? Do you shake your head sadly whenever you see a homeless veteran? Is that all you tend to do?

It's time to put up or shut up America. We all love to talk about how we could do things better or how we would do it if we were in charge. Well, it's time to put your money where your mouth is. If you can think of it, you can write it down. If you can write it down, you can type it. If you can type it, you can e-mail it and if you can e-mail it, you can send it here.

We at Reform America are committed to giving voice to anyone who wants to put their ideas out there to make our nation a better place. As the readership grows, we are able to take those views to a wider and wider audience. Grassroots campaigns begin with voices speaking out. You have opinions. Voice them. We aren't about conservative or liberal. We aren't about pro-this or anti-that. We're about Americans and the First Amendment. Reform America is about politics by, for and of the people. You are the people. You only need to speak up. America is listening. Send your article to: stories@reform-america.net



Have You Been Downsized Due to Outsourcing?

For several years now we have listened to some within the business community tell us that America can't compete on a global scale unless they send our jobs overseas where they can be done cheaper. The question becomes, if we don't have good paying jobs here, how can we sustain our own economy? We want to hear from you. Have you lost your job? Have you been forced into a lower wage job due to outsourcing? Has outsourcing been a success for you? Did you end up in a better job?

Tell us your story so we can make sure the politicians see how outsourcing really impacts the workers who are backbone of America. Send your story to stories@reform-america.net

 

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