Social unrest, justified and unjustified

The fire of popular discontentment that has consumed the Middle East and
is rapidly spreading in Europe may well leap across the oceans to
America. The conditions are ripe, the tinder is dry, and the powder keg
is close at hand.

The consequences of the government’s recent budget cuts have yet to hit
home for the average American. But compounding already high unemployment
and declining social benefits, the American people are suffering from a
political and business leadership that is woefully out of touch with
the masses.

To wit, President Obama’s massive spending on national health insurance instead of focusing on jobs; Wall Street’s arrogant insistence on keeping its tax allowances for luxury expenditures while the rest of the country scrambles to survive; the frightening inability of both parties in Congress to look beyond anything but their own reelection and sectarian interests; the downgrade of American debt by the ratings agencies; and the rapid debasement of the U.S. currency by massive Fed lending.
   
Let us not be as clueless as the leaders of Britain and the Middle East. Why is it so obvious to us that the repressive regimes in Tunisia and Egypt had outlived their time, and yet we are clueless to the fact that those same influences are forcing change in our society?

It is crucial that the underprivileged people in this nation recognize that the opportunities for financial success still exist and that no one is depriving them of those desires, unlike many of the other nations of the world. They should not be confused and must recognize that the American Dream, which is a foundation of our nation, is alive and thriving.