Voice of a Student

According to Bush, “America is safer, but not yet safe,” among other things. Personally, I think America is becoming less safe. Bush and his cronies maintain a stance against “Islamic fascism” while manipulating a government of “Right-wing fascism”.

Bush proclaimed that it is our duty to spread democracy among the world’s many nations, that it is our duty to battle tyrants and fascists. I ask you this, Mr. President:

When thousands of our young men and women are done dying on foreign soil fighting a war that shouldn’t even be, who will be left to defend the home turf? When our soldiers are all dead, having done your handiwork to rid the world of “Islamic fascists”, will foreign soldiers come here to save us from the “Christian fascists” sitting in D.C.?

I’m so tired of this war. I was tired of it before it began. And the longer this goes on, the more I believe that I cannot, in good conscience, pursue the career I had initially planned for.

Now that I’ve all but declared my intention to pursue a career in academia, I feel free to explain myself without fear of marring my seemingly perfect public record. After finishing my undergraduate studies, I had planned to get a government job in one of the beaurocratic branches. My excuse was that I felt I could work for a better, more peaceful future if I “worked from the inside”, but the truth is that I wanted the benefits that would come with said job. The job security would have been phenomenal, I would have health and dental and life insurance taken care of, and I would have the opportunity to learn new languages and travel.

I don’t think I could handle the guilt that would come with working in that field with that branch. And because I have no one to support but myself, I don’t need to worry about whether or not I receive those benefits. My parents are worried about my choice to continue my education and take a more “liberal” path. I know they only want what’s best for me, but they seem to have the traditional American mentality; such a mentality is one of individualism, which isn’t always the best approach.

Individuality is wonderful and I enjoy mine, but most hard-hearted “individualists” seem to lose sight of the greater good. They acknowledge its existence but do nothing to work for it, instead working only to further themselves and their nuclear family while ussaging any emerging guilt with the occasional donation to the Salvation Army. For instance, most Americans of my socioeconomic class would find great joy in owning and driving a Hummer. They enjoy the status symbol it provides and ignore the impact their choice has in the greater scheme of things. Would it really be so hard for them to drive a Prius instead?

I want to do my part to better myself, my nation, and the world. Even if it is something as simple as donating blood at a blooddrive or taking a weekend out of a busy schedule to help the Habitat for Humanity work on a house, it doesn’t take much to help. Sometimes, all it takes is a voice.

And I fear that the extreme individualism of my peers and their apathy have combined to make us the most useless generagion history may ever look upon. Most don’t care about their neighbors and many care even less about the people they pass on the street on their way to work or class. We lack cohesion and a voice. If we somehow gain one- for we already have motivation- would it be possible to gain the other?

This is best illustrated by our current situation, as I have already described it. If Americans learned to stand together and lend their voice to cause, we wouldn’t be in the pathetic position we’re in now. We wouldn’t be in a war and we wouldn’t be making asses of ourselves in the international forum. And I’m willing to bet that Bush wouldn’t be in office right now…

At this point, I’m often so happy when I meet a classmate who stands for a cause- even if I don’t agree with them- that I gain just a little bit of hope for our future. If you are willing to fight for something or even lend your voice to a cause, then you have proven you’re not just some brainless sack of flesh going through the motions of life. And that is a great thing.

So let me leave all of you with this:

Have a cause, a purpose. Whether your cause is as grand as fighting AIDS or as humble as helping preserve an endangered species of fungus, know that you are doing a great thing. One publicised cause is no better than a little-known one. No effort in a cause goes to waste unless you allow it to. Make a difference.

Prove to me that I’m right in saying one person really can make a difference.

Prove to me that you won’t stand by and watch events unfold.

Prove to me you’re human.