Apparently one cannot be a "true
American" unless you:
restrict the Bill of Rights to cover only
those who think the way you do, pray the way you do, and vote the way you
do
feel that some of the Constitution is sacred
but the rest of it is merely there to make life hard for true Americans and
easy for those Goddamn hippies, gays, immigrants, minorities, and other
undesirables
wave a flag and say you are 100% behind the president
(as long as the president is a Republican)
hate anything French
ban the Dixie Chicks
plaster your house, your car, and your body
with red, white, and blue
Furthermore, if you are not a "true
American" then you obviously don't support the men and women in the armed
forces who are doing their job, because after all, everyone knows that if you do
not agree with absolutely everything President Bush says and does then you don't
support our troops.
I'm confounded.
I support the American men and women risking
their lives in Iraq but not the president who sent them there.
I like the colors red, white, and blue but
don't feel the need to wear them to prove who or what I am.
I generally can't stand country and western
music but think the Dixie Chicks are fantastic.
I love French toast, French fries, and the
French language but think French wine and French food are over-rated.
I maintain a healthy suspicion and a
watchful eye over all presidential actions, regardless of who's in office,
and consider blind allegiance to be dangerous (history seems to back this
up).
I cringe at the popular interpretation
of the "right to bear arms" but believe that the Bill of Rights
and the U.S. Constitution are what make America great and unique; eroding
the Constitutional rights of any citizen destroys the very foundation of
America.
I believe that not all religions are good
and not everybody thinks or votes the way I wish they would, but right or
wrong, the FREEDOM to be different from me and be protected under the law is
what makes America strong.
I am proud to be an American, and I believe in the
foundation of this nation. Statements like "Love it or leave it" are
empty, cheap sound bites that simply demonstrate an ignorance of all that
"America" means. I have the right to be ashamed of the actions and
inactions of my government because I am lucky enough to be a citizen of a freedom-loving,
democratic republic, and I'd like to keep it that way, thank-you very
much.
