As we begin our celebratory ritual of lighting fireworks off and pledging our patriotism to the flag, I implore my fellow Americans to reflect upon our allegiances to come together as the United States. Our country is deeply divided between red and blue politics, so much that many Americans refuse to be “political” while clinging to their guns and denying half the population their rights to bodily autonomy. We are great at controlling one another, and meanwhile, over the past 40 years, politicians have "led" us through a fractured ideological system of government, dividing Americans and spiraling all of us “out of control”. We are seen as a dangerous country to outsiders. We can’t agree on any measure of gun control, which has led to more school shootings and inept police protections for our most vulnerable citizens. Instead the police use brutality against their own people, especially people of color at an alarming rate. Furthermore, this new radical Supreme Court has slashed away the Environmental Protection Agency’s ability to regulate federally, and has left regulations up to the states, further fueling our cultural war for superiority. I’m afraid our allies cannot count on the United States for much help as we revert back to our isolationist policies of WWI and WWII. The United States is too busy fighting its own war with each other through greed and individualism. We are greatly divided as ever, and it is not only hurting ourselves, but the entire planet and future generations.
