It occurs to me that the USA I grew up with isn't the same one we have currently.

Here's just a few examples.

When we grew up baseball was wholesome, apple pie was  favorite dessert, Lady Liberty actually stood to greet the immigrants coming here to make a better life. Russia was the bad guy. We were top dogs based on our ideals.

Today baseball is less a national past time as it is a multi-million dollar industry. It's corrupted the ideals of fair play and sportsmanship. Players and athletes clamor for any edge they can get. From steroid use  to gene doping. Corking bats, modified baseballs, and other methods of cheating have soured the whole fair play thing. Teamwork and cooperation have gone the way of the dodo with the sponsors and kick back being the whole point. Multi-million dollar contracts with Nike, Reebok, or what not are the point of the game for contemporary athletes. Not being a role model for our youth. Anyone who is to spend that much time in the spotlight and possibly be a role model for our youth should be evaluated not just on athletic ability but perhaps on their altruistic tendencies or sense of right and wrong. Do you really want someone who has no concept of teamwork as a role model for your kids just because he has a Nike contract?

Apple pie. Something as wholesome and simple as apple pie that was a staple of Americana has kind of gone away. They aren't as prevalent as they once were. And when you do see them around they aren't really touched much. They have too many calories, or the crust has too many carbs. Can't anyone just enjoy a warm slice of apple pie?

America was the land of opportunity. We welcomed immigrants with open arms. People came here from all continents to make a better life. The American dream was contagious. The old saying was that the streets were lined with gold. This just meant that it was truly a land of opportunity.. Today we turn people away who want to immigrate to us. Congress even voted to build a wall along our southern border to keep the illegal immigrants out. America isn't about building walls, it was about tearing them down. “Mr.Gorbachev tear this wall down!” doesn't anyone remember those days? The isolationist direction our government has taken is dead set against what we have always stood for. Our enemies hate us for that kind of openness.  What would they think if they knew the truth? I find it disgraceful that the land of the free and home of the brave has become a bunch of isolationist xenophobic bigots.

America is a superpower now as we have been for a while, but we aren't in that position for a hell of a lot longer. The dollar once met something. It had an actual gold backing. A dollar could have gotten you a little bit of gold. No longer. We have become a nation of consumers instead of manufacturers. We're barely industrialized anymore. Our money goes out, it doesn't come back in. When we get short on cash, we borrow more. The thinking in Washington is they'll just loan us more if we need it. What happens when they collect on our debt? National bankruptcy. The world will go off the dollar as a standard  and probably go to the Euro, a currency based on people who actually pay their bills.

We are also so far behind the rest of the world intellectually its not even funny. Why do you think the jobs get outsourced? Not only is it cheaper but they are smarter. When you have a nation where 75% of the population seriously believe  in a fairy tale about a man and woman in a garden with a snake and fruit, instead of the reality of evolution, or in the fact that the universe and everything in it was created in a week instead and is only 6000 years old instead of the instantaneous creation and the fact thats our planet (not the center of the universe, galaxy , or even our solar system) is only a few billions year old..  We're a laughing stock globally. How can anyone stand that?

I'll tell you, no one knows. Apart from what happens in everyones little life they no longer care about the bigger picture. Thats apparent in looking at how we govern ourselves. We SAY were a democracy but we barely are. In the last election we had more voters than ever in recent history. 47%. If more than half of the voting population doesn't care can we truly be called a democracy?

We had a enemy once upon a time. A real enemy. The Russians, The Russians were a great enemy. They kept us on our toes, they were just as tough as us, we were sure never to go to war because of the policy of mutually assured destruction. They were a cool enemy. They forced us to innovate and get better militarily than we would have without. Today who is our enemy? Militant fundamentalist Muslims. Blowing themselves up for 72 dark haired virgins in heaven. You know whats wrong with them? They  aren't a enemy you can fight. It fighting an idea. For every terrorist you blow away, you inspire 2 more to take their place. They aren't organized so they are hard to find. This is a war we can't win. No matter how many troops and missiles and bullets you use we can't win short of tactically nuking the entire middle east and that is obviously out of the question because you wouldn't get them anyway, there are terrorists in our own country. I don't think that would go over well with anyone.

Our culture has died and been replaced with pop culture, reality TV, hip hop “music”. Pimped rides, and Jackasses. What does this mean when this is what we call entertainment? When was the last time you actually enjoyed a painting? Or really listened to music that was created with instruments and not synthesizers? Have you gone looking for a movie that wasn't mainstream or are those the only ones that you know exist? When was the last time you decided to spend an evening with your family or friends instead of sitting on the damn couch watching some pablum puked up by the networks? Have you read a book lately? It's heartbreaking to know that this is where we have gone culturally. I don't know what to tell people to do to change it, other than get off your ass and do something other than watch TV. Spend time doing something instead of watching something. Build something instead of buying something. Hang out with someone instead of calling them. Get out of the damn house and DO something.

Thats not even everything, just a few things, I could go on forever.

As a country we have become something sadder and uglier than we were when we were kids. The country isn't the one I grew up with. Why don't we make the USA into something we can be proud of again?

This is OUR country, lets do something to make it great again. I don't want the idea of the US to be just an idea anymore. Lets aspire to greatness again.