Jammy! America's Un-identity

So, I've been thinking (frightening, I know). But, I think part of the problem with today is that the United States has a severe case of amnesia of the personal identity sort.

We no longer know who we are.

Historically, we had a purpose. A uniting factor. Whether it be breaking away from Britain as a burgeoning democracy and free nation or fighting to prevent one man from overtaking the world with his views on a perfect world and the perfect race, we knew who we were because we knew where we stood and why we stood there.

Now? Not so much.

The fabric of the US identity is tattered and running like panty hose, a divide racing across the spanse of nylon leaving a gaping chasm of bubbled rings of skin surrounded by two sides pulling and tearing the support structure. Neither side will win the battle - the run will simply reach further along the networked strands.

Are we a religious nation or are we atheist? Are we peace keepers or are we nation builders? Are we pursuing knowledge or are we content with the knowledge we have? Are we a melting pot or are we chicken soup? Are all people free or are only certain people free? Are we a democracy or do we actually prefer monarchy? Who possesses the power within the country? Who are our role models? Are we world leaders or world managers? Do we cower in fear or do we stand brave? Are we independent or are we dependent? Are we individuals or part of a whole?

The disillusion does not exist in those questions. The problem lies in the fact that we no longer embrace the idea that it's okay to ask the questions, to hold different views and believe each person is valued. That was the uniting factor that made the US the nation it was when the Constitution and Declaration of Independence were first penned. That was the United States of America.

Now we are divided by sides, all pulling at the tear to dominate it, weakening it till it splinters further and the initial tear loses shape, becomes something different until it's pulled again. We don't know who we are anymore; the US has become a battleground for the floundering. We look to our 'leaders' for guidance, but they don't know who the US is any better than the rest of us. Instead of acting as the US, they act instead for their interests. And we keep unraveling into individual strings, dangling from the shreds of a red and white striped dream.

We've lost our identity. We can't even tell others who we are. They see our confusion and see the opportunity to join the fray, tearing us apart as much as we contribute to our self-destruction.

We're losing ground; we're losing space for the pantyhose to run and what happens when the run hits the end?

We need to stop the run. We need to remember who we are; not we as individuals, but we as a nation. We need an application of nail polish; a bond which will stop the run and glue the sides. We have a bottle of it - it's pretty full. We have two shades, one's Constitution Red and the other is Declaration of Indepence Pink. Apply both and no matter how much the nylon twists, the tear will never run.