America the Beautiful . . . America the Ugly

Kaye Grogan

Thursday President Bush will be sworn into office for his second term. But why does the formal, pompous occasion have to cost around $40 million? The astronomical projected cost is ridiculous. Why can’t the president just take the oath of office in the house chambers and be done with it? Just think how much less the bill would be, chauffeuring him there in his bullet-proof limo, and escorting him into the chamber.

Well, there’s this little thing called tradition. You know–parades, balls, concerts, and tons of secret service personnel, and police officers on duty looking for would-be assassins or car bombers. But protecting presidents is nothing new. According to outgoing Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge, there will be 6,000 personnel members active, and the no-fly zone will be expanded close to 16 miles. Round the clock surveillance has to be conducted on the facilities to be used.

Okay, this is fine, but if someone was hired into security recently, I’d really be suspicious and watching them with eyes as sharp as a hawk’s. This is clearly one of the drawbacks of having a diverse nation, you never know if someone is here in America to pursue the American dream or destroy the dream in America for everyone else. But after bringing out this fact, I can’t ignore the fact-- there are many American citizens who detest the thought of President Bush being sworn into office for a second term. Just swallow the “bitter” pill and be done with it, is my suggestion.

Ask the Democrats, and most will tell you the president should just nix the inauguration period. But what can you expect from a bunch of sore losers who cause diversity to the max between Americans? They couldn’t unite Americans if their life depended on it.

We always hear about how great diversity is for the nation. How so? Do we get brownie points for allowing our nation to become saturated with foreigners? I don’t see any trophies behind enclosed glass with gold trim from other countries for our tolerance of immigration. But you know all good things must end, even if we must “crack” down on immigration laws. How could we live knowing we have relieved our hospitals of the burden of treating illegal immigrants to the tune of billions of dollars, strapping the already overburdened taxpayers annually, while many of our own citizens are denied adequate healthcare? Remember, you should be honored to be living in a country where you’re last on the totem pole. And just think of how sad everyone would be if our jobs here in America were all available to just the citizens of America. Now wouldn’t that be a bitter pill to swallow?

If we’re still not looking like pushovers, and a bunch of door mats with “suckers” written on them, hang on there’s more. We should be honored that our money goes into programs to pay for other people to have the good life. And since foreign countries like Indonesia, Sri Lanka, etc., are convinced we’re the richest nation in the world, why shouldn’t we send millions of dollars to them? Otherwise, we’ll be labeled as cheapskates. Mercy–we can’t have that! Not with our reputation as the biggest contributors to every rogue nation in the entire world. And remember, you’re supposed to be congenial and smile, knowing your money is going to people who despise you, and shout “DOWN with America”spiteful chants.

And if no one follows the money trail to see if the relief money is actually going to the people it is intended for in southern Asia-just chalk it up as immaterial. Besides, no one really keeps up with the millions of dollars misappropriated and missing here in America annually anyway. So what’s the big deal?

No, everything in America is not all bad, but you’ll have a problem shuffling through the bad and ugly-- trying to find the beautiful and good. You’ll probably be more successful finding that little ole’ needle in the haystack.

And since we’ve tried our darndest, to help our enemies build up their war arsenals, you should feel slighted until we get a personal “thank you” from them. At least they could attach “to America with love” on the missiles they send over here-- to let us know how appreciated we are . . . even if we’re not around to read the thoughtful message.

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Kaye Grogan is a freelance writer who lives in Virginia. She writes, produces, and hosts a daily commentary called “Viewpoint” on her local radio station. She has written op-eds and articles for the Daily Republican newspaper. She also writes editorials for online newspapers and local papers. Kaye has many published poems, one published book, and has been featured in a popular woman’s national magazine. She is currently working on two books for children. Her hobbies include photography and she has won photo contests all over the world.

kayeg@adelphia.net