Andrew; the Angry American (Re-Deux)

Almost a decade ago I started composing emails which I sent to my friends basically outlining my feelings on world events. Obviously, little has changed as I have now branched out from email to blog. Honestly, do you know anyone who doesn’t have a blog these days?

I thought I would take a moment to dust off the explanation of my little nom de plume.

Back in those early days, the U.S. was being blamed for any and all problems everywhere in the world. Voters thought politics had hit rock bottom and that they had begun to dig. Little did we know that it wasn’t the end, but just the beginning. We were being inundated by a multitude of issues ranging from the aftermath of 9/11, the Iraq war, In God we Trust, Terrorism, Immigration, Gun Control, Economic Issues and the incompetency of the United Nations.

Sadly, in the last decade we haven’t seen much improvement. 9/11 only seems to be relevant once a year, politicians are still bemoaning the fact that it is the other parties fault, Political Correctness is still trying to lock God in the ideological broom closet, entitlement babies not only abound but are expecting more, illegal immigration is still rampant, gun control advocates are still screaming about how better life would be if we got rid of all the legal firearms, the Economic situation still seems to allude us and the UN,…………. Is still really irrelevant.

But I want to make it clear that my choice of the signature “the Angry American” is not intended to describe me as someone with inherent bitterness. In the beginning I admit I was angry. Actually the anger was based on being reactive to issues. But with time I matured (at least I would like to believe I have) and I began to look at them, not as isolated events, but part of the larger picture.

For the record I would like to say I was never angry because of differences in opinion. I firmly believe that healthy debate is a cornerstone to democracy. I might not agree with you, but without the ability to have a dissenting voice we would be no better off than any other totalitarian regime.

What I would simply ask all of you is this. It is time that we stop accepting the news fed to us in talking points. I don’t care who you listen to, Beck or Olbermann, Hannnity or Maddow, O’Reilly or Matthews; or from where you get your news: Fox or MSNBC, Huffington Post or Drudge. What I ask is that you please DO NOT accept this as the be-all, end-all.

It’s all spin, we all do it. Ever watch a “news clip” showing a damning statement? Most likely spin. Go watch the whole clip first. I grew accustomed to this in my law enforcement career. The griping news coverage of that vicious police assault. Yeah, not so much. What they failed to show is usually the prior 15 seconds where the defendant is not acting very much like the HS Honor Student photo plastered all over the news. Spin people.

All I ask is that you treat the news media (and politicians) like you treat your kids. Trust, but verify.