What Would We Build If We Crafted the American Dream Today?

 What if we sat down and decided to craft the American Dream today? Knowing our history and all that we have stood for since the Republic became a reality, what would we add to the dream?

The roots of America are multi-national. Americans take great pride in being a melting pot of nationalities. We would build better communications between Americans; the ability to understand and respect one another's cultures and the differences.

We would build a bridge across the great divide in our nation and unite once again, knowing that a house divided cannot stand. We would remember how we always used to settle our political differences before it became acceptable to pelt one another with insults. We would return to being a polite and respectful society. One that stayed informed and took carefully measured steps to effect the changes that are important and use the power of our vote to effect a change when necessary.

We would remind our elected officials that we voted for what we believed was the brightest and best in the lineup; we want you to win. We're not championing your failure. We also know you can't deliver on all of the promises you made. We are an audience that has observed our system for years and understands that some hurdles are bigger than you. We'd remind each of you that if you do the best job you can do, try as hard as you can try and make every effort to do what you went there to do, and still you fall down, we'll pick you up. We respect hard work.

We would build a better working environment for our elected officials, eliminating 'the aisle' and creating a round table big enough to seat all of you. We'd remind you that contrary to what you may believe, you do have something in common; if fact, you have everything in common. You are there to effect the changes the American people have entrusted you to make. You are the only voice we have. We have bestowed a great honor in our willingness to trust you with our vote. We are deeply disappointed when you let us down.

We would build a better understanding of what it means to win in America. You don't score points with us when you are able to defeat a news caster or each other, you score points when we hear the engines of the economy we so proudly built roar to life; when American families cash their paychecks and buy a home that was built by the workers in our housing industry, a home whose taxes build the roads. We would buy a car that gave jobs to our auto industry and whose gas taxes fuel the research on clean energy and maintain and build interstate highways. We would go to the grocery store, not with a food card, but with the cash we earned and reward the hard work of our farmers and manufacturers. We would build a bridge to better understanding between our officials and the American people. You see, we know what it takes to make America work. We have held the job for a lifetime.

We would ask you to stop respecting things that don't reflect the foundation of America and stop looking away from the things that do. We avert our eyes from the homeless and those who are in real need to look closely at things that tear us apart, like legalizing drugs for our children to be exposed to. We want you to stand tall, to be strong and to make good choices on our behalf. We understand that you may never agree, but we all want you to reach an agreement the American way.

We would stand together once again, being proud of who we've been, of the lessons we have learned and have great faith in who we can become as Americans, the crafter of the dream!