The Real State of The Union

This was taken from my online journal from January 20, 2004......yes some of the Bush references are obviously outdated, but it's uncanny what is still true. 

THE STATE OF THE UNION

Forget the speech full of empty promises, forget the media platitudes and ersatz adulations, forget wishful thinking. If you want to know the real state of the union, take a good look with your eyes.

See the millions of unemployed, many with advanced college degrees? THAT is the state of the union.

See the high-paying jobs flowing to other countries? THAT is the state of the union.

See the dollar in decline and nothing left to arrest the fall? THAT is the state of the union.

See corporate executives looting their own companies and then walking free? THAT is the state of the union.

See the schools that lack basic supplies? THAT is the state of the union.

See the closed emergency rooms? THAT is the state of the union.

See the holes in the roads? THAT is the state of the union.

See the rolling blackouts? THAT is the state of the union.

See the defense budget bloat to half a trillion dollars? THAT is the state of the union.

See the new nuclear weapons the US Government is building? THAT is the state of the union.

See the billions in tax dollars pouring out to foreign governments? THAT is the state of the union.

See the American women and children sleeping in alleys and eating out of trash dumpsters? THAT is the state of the union.

See the empty storefronts and commercial vacancies? THAT is the state of the union.

See the closed factories, the rusted foundries, and the abandoned mills? THAT is the state of the union.

See the soaring bankruptcies and foreclosures? THAT is the state of the union.

See the poverty and starvation? THAT is the state of the union.

And then there are the things you don't see.

You don't see those nuclear weapons Iraq was supposed to be building. But we invaded Iraq anyway. THAT is the state of the union.

You don't see chemical or biological weapons we were all assured Saddam had. But we invaded Iraq anyway. THAT is the state of the union.

And most of all you don't see the United States looked up to as a bastion of freedom, law, and democracy any more. You don't see the United States looked upon as a moral leader any more. You don't see the United States looked on as a leader in technology any more.

And THAT, my fellow Americans, is the real state of the union.