A fractured nation...

 

 

"It seems our founding concept of E Pluribus Unum might soon go the way of the dinosaurs. Rather than a melting pot, we have become a fractured pot"

I never thought it could get this bad.  It started in Washington. With Democrats and Republicans hating each other. Then it was one part of the country pitted against another part. Then gay vs. straight. Black vs. white. One religion vs. another religion. Rich vs. poor. People killing police. American people just hating other American people.

What happened in the New York City this weekend, besides being horrific and sad, was a jaw dropper. A new low was reached. Assassinating innocent cops for doing absolutely nothing wrong. Robbing two families of loved ones right before the Christmas holiday. And to what end? The hate speech coming out of elected officials and race baiters seemed to have done its job. Nicely played Mr. Mayor.

In 2008, this country was hoodwinked into electing a man who promised us a "post racial America". Like lemmings, many of us fell for it. The promise of being healed as a nation, was just too good. We had been sliding down the slippery slope to becoming a fractured nation for way too long. We finally had a "healer" in the White House. Someone who understands us. Maybe even a modern day Martin Luther King. We were so wrong.

His true colors started to show just a few months after he was sworn in. It was July 16, 2009. The now famous incident which led up to the "Beer Summit" took place. There was a run in between a black professor named Henry Louis Gates and the local police. The situation became misinterpreted, unfortunate words were spoken, and then things got out of hand. Soon Professor Gates was under arrest. Once the true facts were known, he was released and all charges dropped. When our new President got wind of this, without knowing any of the facts, he said the police acted "stupidly". Rather than keep out of it until the facts were known, or siding with law enforcement, he took the wrong side. The "Beer Summit" was supposed to be the great healing experience for all. It was not.

Flash forward to today. With the unfortunate deaths of two black men in two different cities, the police are being blamed. By many leaders in Washington. By our Justice Department. By some race baiting "Reverends". Facts have nothing to do with reality, except for one. If these two men had obeyed police commands, they would still be alive today. Instead they are not alive and we now have police looking over their shoulders to see if someone is hunting them down.

Recently one of the news channels ran a poll which showed the nation has never been so divided. Ironic, is it not? The great "uniter" we elected six years ago now has us looking like a fractured nation. Rather than a melting pot, a fractured pot.  Maybe our next leader will be better. Maybe next time we will get a "uniter". Or not.