Im posting my blogs, read if ur bored

I saw Hillary Clinton speak at the Learning Corridor. She depressed me. I thought that she may be able to excite a crowd. Nope. Really sad. Whatever, my whole family went to Yale, and they’re all boring, so maybe it’s not her fault.

            This was my first time witnessing a presidential candidate speak first-hand. She did not say anything more than any educated and intelligent person would. Coming out of the rally, I was pondering the caliber of our recent presidents. I feel like, at best, our presidents since JFK have been mediocre. Jimmy Carter did try, but he failed horribly, much too idealistic.

            Are our standards for American presidents set low? Do we, or any generation close to mine, really know what it’s like to have a model president? I’m frustrated. I was thirteen years old and protesting the Iraq war in my History class my freshman year in high school. I protested so much and said so many things that people thought were unpatriotic, that the principle pulled me aside in the hallway and demanded that I tone myself down.

            How did a thirteen year old foresee the same problems we have today? Was Vietnam and Korea not an indicator enough? Are our senators truly corrupt? It didn’t take much sagacity for me to see all the logistical problems with the war. Why is Barack Obama anything special? Shouldn’t every president show us the hope and promise he does?

            Or has our country become a pessimistic world of self-proclaimed ‘realists’ that downplay positive speculation and have to see the possibilities for defeat rather than success. There was a time when being a Senator or Congressman was an honor. Now, it’s the punch line for a joke. What caused the demeaning of our truest servants, the ones on Capitol Hill? Perhaps, it’s because we can’t trust them. We don’t know who to trust. Who’s spinning what, and why.

            I’m tired of spin. I’m tired of filibuster. I’m tired of fear. I’m tired of reactionary government, rather than decisive government. Our Trade Center was bombed in 1994, why didn’t Bill Clinton declare war after that attack? He would have had exactly the same reasons then as Bush did in 2001. Even Bill didn’t impress me. I don’t care if every man is horny - you’re job on Capitol Hill is to better a country, not calm your hormones. Taxes aren’t paid for sexual gratification.

            We should be the staple of honor, the symbol of prudence, the benchmark for success, the reaper of ingenuity, the calling for the winded, the gavel of justice. There was a day when our country stood against slavery, a day when we crossed the seas to bring an end to genocide, a day when we drafted a constitution that is the model for every other democratic constitution written, a day when the people truly cared. Today, we can’t get immigrant workers citizenship, instead leaving those immigrants in shacks and citizens without jobs. Today, we wage war when the rest of the world disagrees, and show them just how right they were. Today, the constitution has become a set of guidelines, to be followed at the president’s discretion. Today, apathy has taken the place of passion.

            But, what will always be true is that there is also a tomorrow. Tomorrow, we can improve and progress. Tomorrow, we can vote. Tomorrow, we can speak. Tomorrow, we can make this nation for and by us. We can tax the rich, and give to the poor. We can respond quickly to natural disasters. We can provide our schools with the funding to succeed. We can subsidize our energy sources and become energy independent and green. We can strengthen our police forces with the resources they need. We can bring our troops home and honor our veterans. We live in the moment, but we work for the future.