Let's become truly free once again.

Tell you what I don't like about America. Lunatic fringe Republicans. Greedy capitalists. Big business. Especially tax-evading and low-paying corporations. And the huge and ever-widening gap between the rich and the poor. This is only a small start on my lengthy list of complaints. Of course, there's lots to like about America, too. That's why I stay. And work for political, economic and social change. Generally, I don't like what America has become. Since 9/11. An over-reactionary country. Americans are being told by political leaders, especially conservatives, that we need to live in fear. That we have to submit to ridiculous surveillance. Such as taking off our shoes at airports. For the sake of security. Meanwhile, the government's National Security Agency has decided to spy on all of us. Collecting wads of private information. We all have become suspects. Big private corporations are doing it, too. Acting on behalf of Big Brother. Keeping tabs on the likes of me. If I start using other than my usual computer, that triggers an alarm. My email network is shut down. Until I can prove that I am me, and not an imposter that broke into my email account. Absurd. Absurd. Absurd.  All in the name of security. We Americans have been robbed of our cherished privacy. Again, for security reasons. We are cautioned. Be careful. Don't trust anyone. Be vigilant. Stand by and guard your bags at the airport. Never leave them out of your sight. Another sign that the damn terrorists have won. America has declared war on bogus terrorism. Yes, the ultimate overreaction. These aren't terrorists. They are gangs of thugs. Criminals. And should be treated as such. The equivalent of the Mafia. No reason to go to war. America has wasted trillions of dollars and tens of thousands of lives is useless and obscene wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Money and lives that could have been spent on building a better America. Please, please America, come to your senses. Let's become free of fear and over-reactionary surveillance. Let's become a truly free nation once again.  --Jim Broede