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Will America Be Great Again?
Donald Trump has reportedly been known for his slogan “Make America Great Again.” If you have not seen it already, there is a video that has circulated around social media for quite a while labeled “Why America Is Not the Greatest Country in the World.” The scene is from a television show known as The Newsroom. The scene depicts a presidential debate between 3 candidates. It can be assumed the one gentleman on the left is a Republican, the gentleman in the middle is an independent, and the woman on the right is a Democrat. A college girl gets up and asks the question “In one sentence or less, can you describe why America is the greatest country in the world?” The woman on the right responds, “Diversity and opportunity.” The man on the left follows this up by saying, “Freedom and freedom. So let’s keep it that way.” Then, the man in the middle says, “The New York Jets.” The moderator tells the man in the middle that he wants him to give a serious answer, a “real human moment.” He interjects with “it’s not the greatest country in the world.” This man in the man in the middle, presumptive independent, goes on a long rant that there is no statistic to actually support the statement that America is the greatest country in the world. The only three things we lead the world in are number of citizens per capita, amount of adults who believe angels are real, and defense spending; however, he concludes with a small speech about how we use to be. America was great at one time. It was not the cause of one president like Ronald Regan, but the overall desire to be the best in the world at everything by everyone living here. We put a man on the moon before anyone else could. We use to have the American Dream that drove people to push themselves beyond their own limits. Today, the American Dream is close to death. College students come right into insurmountable amounts of debt only to find out all the jobs they trained for are taken. America is failing. We can no longer blame it on President Obama or the Republican House and Senate. We must look at ourselves and ask the same question JFK told the American people more than fifty years ago: “Do not ask ‘What can my country do for me’ but rather ‘What can I do for my country.’” America is not the greatest country in the world. Sure we have freedom and opportunity but doesn’t everyone? The reason why we were so great is because we use to fight to be the best because Russia used to threaten us to be better. With the drop off of Russia, we began fighting amongst ourselves. Who cares if you are liberal or conservative? We are Americans. Groups like Black Lives Matter should be listened to but they also need to remember Dr. King’s message that only love can drive out hate. The world is changing and we are no longer the leaders. We must admit it and then decide whether or not we really want to be the greatest. If we do, it all starts with the person you see in the mirror.
Today, all we hear on the news is one campaign attacking the other. We all are blaming each other for everything. We forget that we are all Americans and we should strive for greatness and unity together.