My fellow Americans, as most of us undoubtedly know, our country faces many major issues as it nears its 235th birthday. But as the specter of terrorism continues to hang over us and the actions of foreign leaders must be watched, we cannot forget our domestic problems.
While our country may be a great one, it’s not without flaws. Ignoring these problems to feign strength will only hurt us more down the line.
Our economy is still a wreck, and while we may be slowly bouncing back, there are some things we still can’t ignore.
The unemployment rate may have fallen to 9.1 percent from the 10.6 percent it was a year ago, but this is still unacceptable.
More than anything, in the next few years I want to make sure as many Americans as possible are secure in as many ways as possible. Whether it’s economically, physically or socially, I’d like to make America a more secure place for its citizens.
And there have been a few breakthroughs lately in the security arena.
We finally saw the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” last month. While some may stubbornly, and falsely, argue this will harm our military, we must not see this as anything but a victory for America and the liberties it stands for.
As long as we continued to forbid homosexuals from openly serving in the military, their position in society cannot have been called equal. By letting these Americans fight to defend their country without hiding a major part of their lives, we open the road for sharing more liberties with them.
In a few years, I hope all men and women can marry whomever they love in any state.
Meanwhile, our nation’s health care still does not meet the standards its citizens require, and while President Obama’s actions may have been a step in the right direction, it simply wasn’t enough.
As more of our population reaches the age of retirement and the obesity rate continues to rise, we are going to see more and more health issues in our country. If we don’t prepare correctly, this could have large ramifications for both our economy and health care system.
And recent tragedy has shown our mental health care system is not quite up to par. Tucson shooter Jared Loughner needed mental clearance to be allowed back into his community college, so it’s hard not to wonder if his attack would have happened had he received help.
The question is then, why could we not give him the help he needed before a tragedy like this?
Again, Americans need to feel secure — both in the fact those with mental issues are getting the attention they need, and healthy Americans can get help if they need it.
Problems lay beyond our border, as well.
While we may be officially done in Iraq, we are only now beginning to plan on bringing our forces home from Afghanistan. After nearly 10 years and just under 1,500 American lives later, I think most Americans could agree it’s about time.
Unfortunately Osama bin Laden may still be free, and we can only hope we can catch him soon.
To say we are anywhere near done in the Middle East, however, would be a severe mistake. Iran is still led by the potentially dangerous, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who continues anti-Israeli threats.
Similarly, across the world we have allies in South Korea facing the ailing Kim Jong-il and an ever growing state of tension.
Altogether, we can see there are many issues facing the U.S. in the coming months. In the face of all these, Americans must be shown their government will do its best to make their lives as secure as possible.
It is in these times of trouble when we must come together as one country. Letting petty political differences divide our great nation is the only way we will let these problems overcome us.
Zachary Davis is a 20-year-old history junior from Warsaw, Poland. Follow him at Twitter @TDR_zdavis.
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Contact Zachary Davis at [email protected]