It has been quite some time since I sat here in front of this computer in an attempt to put thought to paper. Some may have thought that I had thrown in the towel and given up the fight. That is hardly the case, it is just that I have been at a loss for words. I feel as though I have just run out of things to say without repeating myself to the point of boring people.

Although I enjoy the process of writing, I do not do it for profit or my own benefit. When I put these thoughts down for people to read I would hope that they would stimulate people to think. I do not write to entertain, if I did I would certainly have chosen a topic that is more humorous in nature.

I cannot tell what effect my little commentaries have once they have been sent out for people to read, unless of course I get a response from those who read them. Most of the time I get responses from the same small group of people who have become faithful readers, and I do thank them for the support they send me.

However, these people are already aware of the problems which I write about, and my articles are not intended for them. Hopefully I will get others, who were not previously aware of what is going on in this country, to think for themselves. After all, that is why God gave us all a brain.

Albert Einstein once said, “He who joyfully marches to music in rank and file has already earned my contempt. He has been given a large brain by mistake, since for him the spinal cord would suffice.”

I find that quote fitting, as many of the people I deal with refuse to even think about the things I write about. They are far too concerned with the outcome of next weekends football games, or some other trivial activity.

I am not the wisest man on the planet, or in my town for that matter. I do care enough about my country to take the time to find out what my elected officials are doing, and to contact them when I disagree with their actions.

I know people who can’t even tell me who their elected officials are, or how to contact them. What does that tell you about their level of concern?

I hate to say this because I know it will offend most who read it, but most people are just too damn lazy and apathetic, and they don’t deserve the benefits that this country offers them.

Take for instance my job. It does not require a high degree of intellect to perform, but it does require a certain amount of physical exertion. Yet I see people who come to work day after day who absolutely refuse to put forth any effort to do the job in a satisfactory manner. For crying out loud, they don’t call it work for nothing. Yet I see people who expect to get paid for just clocking in and being present for 8 hours.

Each position where I work has a job description which details the requirements for a particular position. My job description states that I must be able to lift 50 pounds repeatedly, and to be able to follow written and verbal instructions. Basically it is just grunt work. However there are people who complain when people have to dump 40 pound baskets of fruit all day long. I have had to train new hires whose grasp of the English language is so limited that they cannot follow simple instructions.

I continually ask myself why is this permitted. Then when I think about it I see it as an overall symptom of the problem that plagues this country. Nobody seems to care any more.

People get away with coming to work and standing around, instead of working, because if they are written up, or fired, the union will defend them and get their job back for them. So why should the supervisors and line leaders try to enforce any code of conduct when they know that their efforts are futile?

The same sort of apathy exists across the country. People don’t trust their government, but they refuse to do anything about it. I had an interesting conversation a couple weeks ago with someone who told me that we have to vote for people who are electable.

I said, no we have to stand by our principles and vote for someone who will support the Constitution. She said that those type people don’t get elected. Aside from the fact that elections are rigged anyway, she is right on that point. These people don’t get elected because people refuse to take the chance and vote for what they believe in. Instead they voter for the lesser of two evils. But evil is still evil, and you get screwed no matter who wins.

This country is ours, it does not belong to the government. Those elected officials are our employees who are bound by oath to govern according to the Constitution. It is our job to watch over them and to ensure they do so, and to hold them accountable if they don’t.

Yet as the poet Juvenal once said, “Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?” That has various meanings, but for this case let it be translated to say, “Who is watching the watchers?”

In other words, who is watching over us to ensure that we are watching over our elected representatives?

A country cannot expect to survive when the people stray from the values that it was founded upon. Our nation was founded by men of virtue and who held to certain principles. We as a nation have strayed from those principles, and not until we once again exhibit them, can our nation be saved.

That is one reason I do not write as prolifically as I once did. The problem is not the newest bill that Congress is not pushing through which violates the Constitution. The problem is not Congress itself. The problem is that people no longer hold to the values that made this country what it once was, a land based upon the respect of liberty.

I honestly do not see an answer to the problems this country faces. That does not mean that I would not fight, and die if necessary, defending the principles I believe in. I just feel that no matter the outcome, those of us who believe in these principles are outnumbered by those who don’t, or at least by those who don’t care.

Even if we were to flush the toilet that is Washington D.C. and replace every crooked bastard who currently holds office, the people of this country are the ones who have allowed their elected officials to become bought and paid for cronies to the special interests.

America cannot be saved by politicians, nor by a small group of people dedicated to preserving their freedom. America, if it is to be saved, can only be accomplished if the people, as a whole, return to the principles upon which it was founded. And folks, as morally corrupted, apathetic, and lazy as people are, I just don’t see that happening.

Anyway, that is why I have not been writing as often as I once did. I don’t feel that I am capable of changing peoples values and ethics. I can only continue to stand for what I believe in, and when they come for me, put up as good a fight as possible. The rest I will leave up to God, for it is to Him whom I must answer for my deeds and actions, not some pissant government enforcer who wants to silence my voice.

Life sucks when you are surrounded by idiots.

~ The Author ~
Neal Ross can be reached for comments at bonsai@syix.com. Visit Neal’s Blog at http://www.zombie-slayer.com/neal