When a political leader comes out and uses the sacrifice word, they are castigated and ridiculed. Remember, those of you that are old enough, when Jimmie Carter sat in front of the cameras, with his sweater on and asked the American people to turn their thermostats down, to save energy? This was used by the opposition to paint him as a President that cannot solve problems and expects the people to actually help with solutions. He went on to be defeated and the idea that he asked for sacrifices helped him lose.
Each day we lose more members of what Tom Brokaw, termed the, "Greatest Generation". This is the Americans that entered and helped win World War II. There are stories of men, that were rated 4-F and could not serve in the military, who committed suicide. They wanted to sacrifice for their country. During the war, people had bond drives and Americans saved pennies, so they could buy war bonds and contribute. They had rationing to preserve food, rubber, fuel and other materials for the war effort. American children went out with wagons to collect scrap metal to help our men and women at the front. Corporations, overnight went from making automobiles and refrigerators to tanks and munitions. Everyone sacrificed and then we succeeded.
Where is that same mentality today? We ask billionaires to pay their fair share of taxes and we are labeled as Un-American. We are asking for Universal Health Care and we are now, Socialists. We ask for corporations to pay a fair and living wage and we are told we are destroying America. We ask for the poor to work and produce and then we give them no jobs, while we complain about having to pay to support them.
Look at the auto industry. A short while back, they were faced with the spectre of bankruptcy and yet a few weeks ago General Motors posted their largest profit ever. What happened? People sacrificed. The workers, that are being demonized by the right, gave concessions. They gave back pay. They gave back benefits. They reduced hours. Management then worked hard to organize better, They pushed for better products and then when the profits hit they gave large bonuses to the workers. They companies are paying back the American people. Everyone sacrificed and we succeeded.
I have an idea! If sacrifice leads to success, why don't we all sacrifice? The wealthy elite can stop paying 12% or less in taxes and start paying the same as the working folks do. Home owners could give up their tax deduction on mortgage interest, while corporations stop having special tax breaks that lead to them paying little to nothing in taxes. We could see that people are able to get fair and honest wages in return for helping companies make better products and profits. Then companies could reward workers with bonuses. Parents could sacrifice some leisure time to help teachers and schools to educate our children. The list can only grow from here. Everyone has to give to lead us back to prominence.
I gave the example of the Greatest Generation, but look back at the history of not only our country, but the history of mankind and you will see examples of sacrifice. In our American history, look at the Pilgrims and what they endured. Our Revolutionary War and the founding father, did they not sacrifice much? How about the settlers that spread across our great country, did they have hardships? The Civil War, the great depression, industrial revolution, two world wars, the list of sacrifices continues, and I have to ask, what have you sacrificed? What have you done? What have you committed to? These questions all have answers and that answer is sacrifice for the betterment of our country.
President Kennedy phrased it best in his inaugural address, "And so my fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you, but ask what can you do for your country." Is it to much to ask that we all give to save America?
John: here is a suggestio0n that if we follow through, we will reach the higher mark. Lets start by working minimum wage jobs with yearly diminishing benefits, and increasing medical insurance. Let us see commercials for low financing credit cards and apply for them so we can pay a monthly fee on expenses such as gas, food, and the occassional icecream on a hot day. This will allow us to supplement our low wage salaries, thus increasing our debt and decreasing our credit score. Lets also get a second part time job to pay for HOA fees or better yet pay the electrical bill to help finance the tower they are building to make our miserable lives more energy efficient. As we all know the more you pay the better off we will be. We can also request to have more taxes drawn out of our checks to help pay for national defense and reconstruction overseas so when our soldiers return they find out that VA has no benefits for them. Or better yet lets all commute on election day to vote for a socially impaired moron who lives off the expenses of the working middle class so he can put more money in his pocket for his Hampton vacation. Wait, never mind we already do this. Yes sacrifice, our Mantra. We need to open our eyes and soon. The politicians of today will not care for us tomorrow when we reach to them to solve our social problems because simply put they do not care. If we can sacrifice more we might continue to make these elite bankers and politicians wealthier.
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