13 Years Later

13 years ago our country was delivered a devastating blow at the hands of extreme militant cowards.

It is one of those events that burns into your mind and you can remember the exactly where you were and what you were doing when it happened. It was terrifying, stunning, and deeply depressing. For this reason I never care to relive that day in any form. I don't watch movies about what happened, including the conspiracy films. I don't watch the videos of the crashes. I don't relive it in the form of news or radio broadcasts from that day. The memory I have is all that I need. Also, frankly, I don't care where you were or what you were doing that day either. It doesn't matter. I don't need to feel what I felt that day over and over.

I don't need to feel it because the effects of that day are still rippling through our nation and every cultural nook and cranny of our society.

For a brief moment we were brought together in a wave of patriotism and a wonderful feeling as one nation, one community. But all of that quickly dissipated and we starting seeing the flags that once flew proudly from car windows being run over on the freeway. Patriotism went from being a sense of pride for our country to being an outlet for anger, intolerance, and hatred. That day became a sound bite or politicians to use for campaign gains. It became a banner for our backwood rejects to wave around and wear on t-shirts, without actually offering anything to truly better our country. We swiftly became polarized, No one can remember that day without spitting out some kind garbled mess laced with political points of view. You have to sit through conservative propaganda or liberal conspiracy anytime the subject is broached. It is a dishonor to all of those that needlessly lost their lives.

Now we live in fear and the events of 9/11/01 are the spring board for all kinds rhetoric that will label you a trader or blasphemer if you disagree with any agenda even ones having nothing to do with that day.

Since then our society has deeply dumbed itself down. We waste hours of our lives watching rich people live theirs through scripted nonsense we call reality TV. We made a backwoods hillbilly child a start so we could gawk are her like an animal and we follow intently what rich people all over the world are doing. As long as they are fucking and fighting, we stay glued to the TV. If I were to ask someone what the latest was in the world of the Kardashians, I would surely be in for a half hour run down of relationship and new product line updates. If I asked what was going in the war that everyone so adamantly loves to express opinions on, they would regurgitate whatever they heard last from their brief passing look at their news station of choice but that would be about it. We are only conveniently concerned.

Our political and religious agendas stand squarely in the way of any innovation or progress. Grid lock is the norm for our government. This is on any issue that doesn't have to do with rich people getting richer. I think all politicians agree that the rich stay rich. At least we have that. We will stick to the script until it all blows up in our face.

In the private sector people are claiming to build empires based on trends and market research as opposed to taking any risks with ingenuity or innovation. Take an old idea and put the swagger on it then sell it to the product hungry consumer zombies that are haunting the floors of every mall in America. Bombard the masses with needless objects that will keep them glued to their TVs and applauded by their equally brain dead friends.

Our entertainment industry is designed to keep us seated and sedated and stupid. About as deep as people want to look into music are songs about big asses, fucking, money, and the recovery from a broken relationship. Music that has inspired introspection is now just about being self centered. Only repetitive beats, manufactured specifically to what the industry knows you subconscious will respond to and lyrics that inspire you to do whatever can to improve your social standing or get over a lost lover. As long as we can get drunk and dance to it, we are fine. Just don't make us think.

People are obsessed with relationships but no one knows how to make one work. I almost expect when I meet a family for some of the kids to not look like both parents. What we fail to realize is all that nonsense from movies and music we eat is garbage and real life does not end on two people kissing atop a skyscraper or in the rain at sunset.

We complain constantly about our food but the majority of our population still gravitate to drive thrus and eat meals from paper bags. Then we claim to have no personal responsibility for this decision. We are corrupted and held captive by corporations. We are completely comfortable with the fact that someone else is making our decisions. We want to be free but we want the government to step in and make these corporations stop making our decisions...it doesn't make sense.

If we aren't blaming corporations, we are blaming the government and no one turns their finger toward themselves. No one really stands up to do anything about. We have become a nation of slacktivists where the lengths we will go is only as far as our social media pages will let us. We think that clicking and reposting is the answer. We hold this act up as a way to raise awareness. We are all more aware of things than ever before but no one is actually active. We will repost but we won't donate. We will dump cold water on our heads to keep from donating. We will tell of the struggles of the impoverished and less fortunate but we will not volunteer our precious TV time to actually helping.

We are in a constant state of fear and war, poverty, and sickness but yet we have people that principled stances on things like public breast feeding. We are secure from outside threats of terrorism but our own police force have turn into abusive bullies with little to no accountability. Our schools are run like prisons, and at home kids are treated like accessories or extensions of their parents style and we can't seem to understand how we are failing our youth. But still, lets sign a petition that says women can breastfeed in restaurants. Divert your attention from the bigger issues and lets work on our pettiness.

Where once we were united as one nation with a common enemy, now we are back to our old ways with racism and hatred. Racism is a game no one will ever win in this country. There are so many hateful biased people on one side and on the other it doesn't matter what you do or say you are racist. For me, being white, I have to watch what I say or do and tolerate the reversal in racism. We justify this through "Well you started it" policy. So I must pay for the sins of true ignorant bigots. Also, I am not allowed to have an opinion about things that directly affect me if it has to do with another race. No one can accept that we all have biases and that is not going to change. No one seems to want to accept that you are perceived by how you present yourself and that if you don't want to be thought of a certain way then you should probably not act the way you do. This is a across the board for every race, gender, or sexual orientation. And if you want people to take your cause seriously, then you need to take yourself seriously.

I think that basically what I am getting at here is that 9/11 for me was horrific and I had hopes that the country as a whole would work to become greater afterward, but we haven't. Somewhere along the way we sold our souls for security and toys. Memorials are sponsored by corporate pirates and we run out to buy their shit as fast as we can. We have developed an uncanny ability to live in denial about the true state of our union. We keep our heads buried so deep in bullshit that we have lost our ability to do actual great things. Now we just buy things and watch things, get fat, and hate people. Bullets and social media have become the new national pass times. We were once a nation of great men and women and now we are a bitter hole that celebrate pregnant teenagers and worship narcissism.

My brother and my father both went over seas to fight. I am not for a second discounting the sacrifices they made for what they believe in and our country. I am however saying that I wish they could have come home and known they fought for something a little better than what we have now.

So while you are reminiscing and taking this opportunity to let all your friends know just how much you love your country, think about how you could make it better. Think about how you could do something with your life that would reflect in a positive light what it is to be American. Think of someway you could be looked at with pride as opposed to an ever inflating fast food fueled mall fiend.

I love my country. I like the idea of what we have. I just feel the bright light is fading. What could you do to make your country better? What could you do to show that we have prevailed over this evil? What can we do?

God Bless America.