During this time of upheaval in our country, the story I would most like to tell is a simple one. It is a story of common sense, which seems to be sorely lacking at the moment. I am so completely and utterly frustrated by the American people who are currently caught up in this war between those who love Trump and those who hate him. Protests for everything seem to be all the rage these days, when in fact more times than not they appear to some as an excuse to incite chaos, destroy property, and provide no real solution to the current climate in our country. Suddenly we are a country that needs safe spaces because we cannot process feelings of disappointment.
When Ronald Reagan was elected, my parents did not sit us down and look at us with fear in their eyes because an actor, of all people, was just elected to be President of the United States. They let us be children and they handled their concerns as adults. No flags were burned, no decisions to move out of the country were made, and most definitely no turning their back on the country that helped them land on their feet. They got up the next day and they went to work! They gave the man a chance and were pleasantly surprised by some of what he managed to do. Yet here we are, three decades later, collapsing on the floor because:
"This is not the candidate I wanted."
"This is not my President."
"What am I going to tell my children?"
Americans were once strong and resilient. But in my opinion, the last 8 years have perpetuated an attitude of self-entitlement, a "millenial me" generation, a resistance to respecting the law and those who uphold it. These mass temper tantrums that result in protests that disrespect America and encourage more hatred and violence...that makes me want to say "What am I going to tell my children?"
I did not vote for President Obama and I would never have voted for Hillary Clinton, no matter who ran against her. Trump isn't necessarily the candidate I wanted but had Hillary won, would I have burned a flag? Whined and rioted? No. I'd have kept moving forward as a true American citizen. It is time to be adults and let the children behave like children. It is time to get back to work and let the man do his job instead of getting in his way. It is time for some common sense.
~ Anna DeLuca