"(Insert your demographic here)" American

Sometimes it feels as if everyone hates everyone else in America today. Currently the "Black Lives Matter" is predominant in the news, both in print and on the 6:00 PM News. The reason for this dates back to the killing of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri by a white police officer. The fact, as determined by law, that it was a justified shooting had no bearing on the movement and it has continued to gain strength through the media to the point of concern by the majority of America today. The question I have for those pushing this agenda is: Why?

Do Black Lives Matter? How about White Lives? Asian? Hispanic? What about Native Americans? After all, they were here first. How about Jewish? Arab? Italian? Do Muslims matter as much as Christians? How far down do we need to go to reach a point where a complete division exists in America today?

Of course, the current BLM is the hot topic as they are the group crying foul the loudest. Whites are oppressing them by the acts of the past, by ancestors dead and gone some two hundred years ago when our ancestors brought their ancestors to this country as slaves. Then some hundred and fifty years ago a war was fought and the black community was freed. Some fifty years ago laws were passed to further level the playing field for people of color. But that is not enough; no, now they want to be able to act as they please: rob, murder, rape, and basically pillage our country without any laws curtailing their actions. And if they run afoul of the law and are shot, well then that's not fair and ol' Whitey better stop it! At least, that's what it feels like to me.

Take the issue that is currently in the news where a group of three Black men entered a pastor's home, robbed it, raped his pregnant wife then murdered her. I am bothered that this is not making the headlines like a black man killed by a police officer did. Is this not a heinous, unthinkable, horrible crime not just against this woman, her unborn child, and her family but against humanity as a whole? Why is there not an outcry by the entire nation against these men, whatever their skin color may be? That is is black should not be an issue although to many, it is.

I suppose my point is that we as a country continue to worry more about our specific faction, our creed, our skin color; that the overall picture of a small group of individuals demanding attention and favoritism above and beyond what We the People as a whole should request continues to divide our nation. If America is to stand together, we better put our individual demands aside and stand shoulder to shoulder against the horror that America is facing. There should be no "whateveryoumaybe" American; it should be American. Period. Nothing before, nothing after. Just American. Fight against the murderers, rapists, terrorists, drug users, pedophiles; fight for one another. Color should NEVER enter into the equation! Ethnicity should NEVER be considered. We all live here, together; doing our best to make this country great once more. Until each fragmented group realizes this, until each ethnic group acknowledges this, until we all agree with this we have no chance. None. Please, America; throw down your selfish demands of what you want and help us all to make America better for all concerned. Remember: by helping others you help yourself.

From the time the United States of America was born, we have been separatists. Perhaps this was not intentional, but it occurred nonetheless. We separated ourselves from England because of our desire to have our own way of life, including how we worshiped, how we were taxed, and who would rule our nation. I completely understand and agree with those desires, yet we did not stop there. Whites were the ruling class, Negros the subservient. Indians (those which were here first, not those in India) were looked upon as savages, heathens, less than human. If anything, they were lower than the Negros of the time. So, we set our feet upon a path whereby we (the whites) were the ruling class of the country, on a throne above all others within the country which was created to be free.

Again, we did not stop there. It seemed that certain whites were more equal than others. American English sat above Irish, Scottish, even French. While the word "equalilty" resounded off of the columns of Washington, the reality was something less than indicated. Not all were equal in each other's eyes.

Another time, another influx of those seeking the dream. German, Swedish, Russian arrived on the continent seeking to have land of their own. They were not always met with open arms, and again segregation came into play. Then came the Chinese, Japanese, Italians and more, all seeking equality, never finding it.

Wars came and went, and those required to serve often served together, albeit not necessarily on even terms. As I have heard it said, some were more equal than others. Nothing really changed until Lincoln's time and the Civil War. Slavery was abolished, and the term all men are created equal truly began to take shape. But not really.

Blacks began to get more opportunities, but they came about grudgingly. This was not a happily ever after tale; it was life, true life and nothing in life that was worth having came easy. This was no different. Equality among men was spoken of, but often with a blind eye towards it truly taking place. And not just men's equality was in the forefront.

Women's equality began to take shape, and this was fought just as hard as those of color and those of other countries. And even though those within this great country refused to band together on anything else, they nonetheless agreed on one thing: Indians were still beneath them. They were still heathens, savages, and should be destroyed, eradicated, exterminated. Lo, the Poor Indian... America, you almost succeeded in the manner of Hitler many years later.

Skip forward several decades to the 1960's, and the Civil Rights Movement. Finally, something was beginning to change. Persons of color, no longer considered as animals by the majority of the country were starting to take a stand, and were gaining equality. Women were gaining a new freedom themselves; and Indians were still on the reservation. The various races and minority groups had settled in their own areas of the country and cities, and although we were America, we still were divided among ourselves. Certain opportunities would come along where we discovered we could work together, showcasing the best we could be. World War I and II were examples of the different races and such banding as one in the face of an adversary. But even then, we shamed ourselves by locking up a large group of people, treating them as if they were criminals. Japanese Americans found themselves in concentration camps, for no other reason than their nationality during World War II..

Korea was worse, and Vietnam worse yet. The Civil Rights movement had a good start, but met with resistance, No matter what was tried, something always found a way to cause a rift. Legislation was passed, eliminating the root cause of the inequality as far as the law went, but man was another thing altogether. Even when we know what is right, sometimes we still cannot follow through on it.

Modern day; today; now. How far have we progressed? Are we One Nation Under God? Or are we further from our destination than ever before? Let's run through a sampling of America today, shall we?

African American, Mexican American, Latin American, Native American, Japanese American, Chinese American, Italian Russian Polish American. If there is a nationality, there is a nationality American. And we don't stop there.

Gay, lesbian, heterosexual, homosexual, Right Wing, Left Wing, Republican, Democrat, Liberal, Conservative, Tea Party, you name it, we divide America into smaller and smaller groups. Did we learn nothing from Lincoln?

A house divided cannot stand.

When will we learn? When will we realize we are chipping the country into smaller and smaller chunks and pieces; pieces which some other entity can and will pick up for themselves? Once they begin collecting, they will continue until they own us, lock stock and barrel.

So incredibly simple, yet so incredibly difficult. Everyone wants their own, right now, mine mine mine. I want it all. When will we live up to the best we can be?

I realize everyone wants their own "cred". Everyone thinks they have a voice that needs to be heard, that they have something to say. Great! We need to hear everyone's voice; just not at the exclusion of other peoples. Many, many years ago some people had bought some land from my Grandpa. He had upwards of 100 acres, and somebody he worked with wanted to buy a couple of acres from him to live on. He was a good man, and he sold 5 acres to them. They promptly moved a trailer onto the land, and set up collecting junk cars. After a few years, they stopped making payments, moved, and left everything on the land. One day while walking among the scrapped cars, I chanced to look inside a 1964 Corvair body. There on the dash was a magnet which had some words on it. That has been some 40 years ago, and I still remember what it said.

"What? You are speaking so loudly I can't hear what you are saying."

America, you are all speaking so loudly no one is being heard. I do not care if you are a Homosexual. I do not care if you are of a different race, creed, color, nationality. WE ARE AMERICANS FIRST, LAST, ALWAYS! At least, we should be. We should care more for our country and countrymen than we do for ourselves. We should fix what is broken, not caring if it was a Democrat that came up with the idea, or a Republican or Tea Party or Left Wing of Right Wing or Liberal or Conservative or WHATEVER! If it is broken, work together to fix it.

I am fed up with each "Minority" Group thrusting their cause, or their demands, or their faces into the camera and saying that they need to be heard or respected or kneeled down before. YOU ARE NO BETTER THAN ANYONE ELSE! Stop playing for the cameras and do something to help yourselves. Help each other. Help everyone.

And the media: do you think the Founding Fathers EVER thought Free Speech would come to this? I am ashamed of the way the media plays the country, spinning tales for everyone to buy into. The other day, I heard on ESPN driving home the host talking about the horrible way a school, Virginia I believe it was, had "stormed the court" after they beat perennial basketball powerhouse Duke. And Duke's head coach was telling the school that beat them that they had no business storming the court until all of his players and staff were off the court and safe. I understand his concerns, and they have some validity.

What I was amazed at was ESPN reporting this as a sordid scene where Virginia went amok, and saying they should have been more restrained. Really? ESPN, who makes its living on these types of moments, showing them over and over again, is saying stop? ESPN, who created the hype and desire to appear on their own show with some kind of over the top moment? The show that came to be known as showing an ESPN moment? Really? NOW you say to stop? After years and years of finding the best, and sometimes the worst in sports and showcasing these clips time after time; now you want these people to not do what you wanted them to do before?

Americans have played to each other and the media for so long that it has become the norm. Selfishness, not Charity or Caring or Understanding or Compassion have become the creed of the United States of America. United States. Remember that? Do any of you remember what that means? United. Together. One. Whole. A band of people bent of the betterment of all, not the slavery of most.

Please, America; find a way home to that which created this country. The next time you want to spout your thoughts to some camera, take a moment and decide if these are worth spouting, or if they are just your perception of what needs to be done. Will it benefit the majority of Americans, or only a small section of it? Drop the inherently divisive tags of Pseudo-American; become American again. Just American. Nothing more. That in and of itself should be enough. It is for me. How about you?