This country is held together by lies. Our state religion is indoctrinated to us all as children until we can no longer use logic or rationality properly. We are schooled that we're superior to other countries for our Democracy and Freedom- though neither is true. Our "representatives" are actually members of private, for-profit, corporate-sponsored parties that select both our laws and voting options for us. Most legislation serves and is often being written by their financial backers, the minority wealthy business class. While they stay eternally insulated and empowered, more than half of the country now lives below the poverty line- a purposely outdated metric hiding true numbers. The majority here are non-represented wage slaves.
America used to have genuinely different points of view in the media, but years of conglomerate consolidation has left this divide open to strategic manipulation. With the fairness doctrine killed, and News being legally rebranded as Infotainment, network narratives have replaced impartial summaries of the facts. The capitalist machine churns out drama, intrigue, cheap posturing, and projects approved Left or Right rhetoric onto each populace segment. Our supposed Freedom is multiple choice tests based on our social programming- zero new ideas or wider perspectives allowed. We get coached Foreigners are Threats, War is a necessity for Safety, and our Military is to be praised and Honored regardless of what they are doing, or to whom.
Less than 1% of the population maintains and protects this system because it Works for them. Some feel justified because it's technically legal now, thus 'part of the game'; some are legitimate sociopaths, lacking empathy for anyone who can not or will not step on others to get ahead. This selfish egotism is destructive for all- by protecting climate change denialists, white supremacists, or anyone else insisting that their opinionated ignorance is equal or better than provable facts. These millionaires purposely normalize and encourage imitations of this socially toxic behavior like cult leaders, raising future sociopaths to defend economic injustice under the guise of political preference, to actively work against our own interest.
Our governmental system is a rigged antique, kept alive only by pomp and circumstance, habits and rituals. We have returned to taxation without representation, that very foundation upon which this country was built. We are told healthcare can't be anything more than another for-profit luxury service, forcing families on stagnant wages to choose between food or health. It isn't Freedom to suffer for the Masters' entitlement. It isn't democratic that we can't vote for Peacemakers, only approve one of two corporate-friendly Warmongers. We are not a moral nor admirable nation when trillions of dollars are invested in dropping bombs overseas while women and children suffer domestically. "National pride" is for the brainwashed and ignorant.
This is the true condition of our nation today. The Powers That Be are doing everything possible to obfuscate reality, keep their gravy train going as long as possible. IT IS OUR JOB TO DISRUPT THAT. Forget Democrat, forget Republican, every label has been hijacked and effectively neutered except as divisive public relations tools for the highest bidder. That's why our youth are embracing Socialism; capitalism has helped con artists like the Clintons steal their lives and rights. The people of this country deserve equal representation. They deserve a minimum quality of life more than a few CEO's deserve 800x the minimum wage. Monopolies need to be broken up as they used to and any business too big to fail is too big to exist, period.
We are sane humanists for recognizing these truths and taking action. We are following in the footsteps of greatness. There is never an easy path to take when forced to correct one's own corrupted government, and everyone has had their own methods or direction. Trumpism. Berners. Greens. Libertarians. But the one thing we all agree on is that the current system is just protecting a handful of elites that no longer represent nor serve We the People. The only thing that truly scares the elite minority is the majority working together against them, thus why so much effort and money is invested into our division. If our consensus can be the foundation of a Unify movement, today's political criminals can be replaced with honest statesmen.
My fellow countrymen, there is more that unites us than could ever divide us. Our enemies are not overseas, nor each other. Our enemies are all enemies of true democracy, of equality, of human rights, of a transparent government for the benefit of the many, not the few. A genuinely representative institution prioritizes people, not policies of profit and privilege. The litmus test for any politician should be not who is least offensive, or what ticket they run on, but who truly understands, acknowledges, and is prepared to act on the beliefs the majority hold. Nothing changes until we change ourselves; voting by brand is lazy, enabling, and guarantees a worsening of the issues we face. Break free from those religions- vote for Truth.