Slipping Into Anonymity
Written by Billy W on December 7, 2008
So, America has elected its first African-American president. That’s something I always heard would never happen growing up. But it has, and that’s pretty fucking cool. I can’t deny that. But, I also can’t deny that I’m not feeling too good about America’s position in the world, for now and in the future. Yeah, Mr. Obama’s election got everybody feeling positive for a little bit, but national economies that were mighty last year are starting to circle the drain and America itself saw staggering job losses last month. Things aren’t looking up and there aren’t too many people who are thinking that things are going to start turning around anytime soon after the inauguration.
I’d like to say something more positive here about how I believe in America and that it will pull through and regain its position at the top of the heap and all that, but I spent most of the last decade watching the country tank and frankly, have spent the better portion of my adult life experiencing just what it feels like to witness my homeland become broken and withered while people of other countries around the world came to hate us more than they ever have.
How did it get so bad? Why did we let it? Was there ever really any way we could’ve stopped it? I guess I don’t think that we could have. Ten years ago, everybody could see that America was losing its edge. China was already angling to gain a foothold in the Middle East by opening up oil fields in countries that were more willing to do business with them than US. I guess the powers that be (your guess about who they are is as good as mine) in the U.S. and elsewhere in the world, saw the inevitable truth that America was about to begin a long, steady slide into mediocrity and they decided to have a fire sale, making a lot of people who were already ridiculously wealthy even wealthier.
Does this mean that I feel completely hopeless? Hell no. I’m not worried about myself; I’ve always taken care of Number One. But, as the future unfolds and the shape of the world changes, I can’t help but feel a little sad about what has become of the country where I was born and raised. Where are things headed for America? I know I have no ideas. But, what I do know is that way too many of its citizens are playing out the helpless victim role. It has become sickening.
Recently, someone asked a group of us living here in Japan, What has living in Japan taught you about yourself? Well, I’m not 100% sure about the answer to that question yet. But, I do know what it has taught me about my own country. Mostly because I see the same thing happening here. I used to think it was the collective spirit of the people of a nation that made that nation mighty. Now I know differently.
Posted in: Journal