“You can always count on the Americans to do the right thing– after they’ve tried everything else” sounds like a clever and witty punchline delivered by any of the late night talk show hosts describing the current environment of American society. Well, it wasn’t a joke aired on the “Tonight Show with Jay Leno” or the “Late Show with David Letterman” or even by “Piers Morgan Tonight” (yup, still on the air). These words were spoken by the late Winston Churchill, Prime Minister of Britain during the Second World War. And boy oh boy, have his zingers about the good ole’ US of A stood the test of time.
You’ve all heard that infamous line that American politicians seem to use anytime they’re desperate for applause in a long, dry speech. ”America is the greatest country in the world”. I always believed it, and I think the world accepted it as well, only until lately when things really went into the toilet. America used be number one in terms of everything! Automotive, Politics, Natural Resources and most of all, Freedom and Liberty. I cannot write this and legitimately feel that the U.S leads in any of those categories anymore. Churchill was right back then about Americans, and he’s still correct today. From the best to a bismal in only decades.
After all, Hollywood’s success of producing movies and celebrities is the one and only industry America has consistently lead the world in. Sure they may rank very low on social issues such as healthcare (37th in the world) and the distribution of wealth (richest 1% of Americans’ earnings is more than the other 99% of the population combined), but damn it, those Americans sure make great movies in Hollywood! Crazy how easy the world seems to forget these “unfortunate facts” when all we read about in newspapers and online media outlets are these beautiful celebrities living the American dream. How can most Americans be in economic peril when Brad and Angelina might be buying their third multi million dollar home in Beverly Hills?
Yes this is unfortunately the United States of America in 2012. It’s still the “land of opportunity”, but the land sure ain’t producing the kind of opportunities it once was for the other 99%, also known as the “normal folk”. It’s a tragic truth that in today’s world, the original “American Dream” of living a better life than previous generations has now been replaced by the new America of working today and dreaming tomorrow. But hey. There’s always Hollywood.
