Does anyone remember this America?

• Remember when America was the country that every other country wanted to be like? Remember when torture and making people disappear were things that we looked down on as a country, because we had the moral high ground? Remember when America's intelligence agencies were busier protecting her citizens than monitoring them? Remember when we had a president who spoke out of knowledge, who you knew actually spent time learning about the tasks at hand? Remember when racism and sexism were things to be despised and those who reveled in them were marginalized? Remember when this country went to war as a last resort, to defend ourselves or our allies? Remember when those who thought dissenters "traitors" were themselves thought lower than fools? Remember when discussion about politics didn't end with a statement of political or ideological affiliation? What happened? How do we get back to that America? Don't you miss her?

• Answer:

  It was good to be an American! The neighborhood was your family, you talked to each other. Children had time to play and homemade cookies in the afternoon. Americans weren't as rich but we had a very good work ethic. School was a very important part of life, too. What happened is the idea that the almighty dollar is required to have a good life! Everyone works to buy the good stuff. Work is a place to put in time, not try to rise - the fear of outsourcing is too strong. To get more money you have to find a better job with a different company, if you stay with one company for 5 years, you lose. Kids have to go to school, music classes, dance classes and intramural sports. The family and neighborhood don't count. The key is the 'location' not the friendliness in the community. I miss the old life; I guess I will have to move to a small town to get the 'Mayberry' feelings, again.