To the Children of the World,

[Guest guest]

from Kristin Isler <kisler

 

 

 

To the Children of the World,

 

 

 

I just want to apologize to the Children of our world, not only in the

U.S., but everywhere.

 

 

 

First, I'm sorry that my generation, and generations past, did not

take care of the planet that we lived on. Because we were supposed to

be the most intelligent species living here, we believed that we owned

this world. So we polluted the skies, ground, and water. And now

it's not safe for you to swim in our lakes and oceans, breathe our

air, and eat what we grow in the ground. Our President, instead of

trying to make a safer world for you to grow up in, has contributed to

this by allowing more pollution to contaminate our environment.

 

 

 

I'm sorry about the schools that you will go to for your education.

The teachers work so hard, spending long hours after school and during

weekends, to try and give you the best education possible. But the

bureaucracy cares more about numbers and testing than about true

education. Some teachers aren't allowed to teach things like science

or social studies, because " those subjects are not on the end-of-grade

tests " . Our President did not provide the necessary budget for all

your educational needs, so some of the programs that I enjoyed as a

child have been cut from the schools. And since there is not enough

money, the schools couldn't hire new teachers to make class sizes

smaller. I'm sure you'll enjoy getting to know the other 30 kids in

your class, even if the teacher never has time to help you one-on-one.

 

 

 

And I'm sorry that it's not safe for you to go to school, or the mall,

or ride a bus, or a train, or a plane. Well, to do anything really.

You see, there are some bad people in the world, called terrorists,

who attacked us. And instead of chasing them down and making sure

they couldn't hurt anyone ever again, we decided to go to war with a

completely different country. Since we did that, most of the

countries in the world don't like us anymore. We've made a lot of

people angry and now our country is even less safe. Our President cut

the budget for programs like the police and the fire department, which

are the first responders, so we have less security than we did before

9/11.

 

 

 

And I'm sorry that, while my generation and your grandparent's

generation were allowed free speech, anything you say or do will be

watched for signs of terrorism. We were also allowed to protest

anything and everything, including the President. But now there are

things like " Free Speech Zones " and that is the only place you are

allowed to truly speak your mind. And if you are able to speak your

mind and it is against the President, they will accuse you of being

" unpatriotic " .

 

 

 

And I'm sorry because our country actually used to have a surplus of

money in our budget. Since this administration came into office we

now have a huge deficit that will probably never be paid for in my

lifetime so we will pass the bill on to you. And although we had this

huge deficit, our President decided to cut taxes, which really only

benefited the wealthy, instead of making sure there was enough money

to pay for his spending. When our President was just a business man,

he ran several companies into the ground, so why should we be

surprised when he treats this country any different?

 

 

 

And I'm sorry that there were times when I couldn't take you to the

doctor or get your medicine because they were too expensive or because

we needed things like food more at the time. The government wouldn't

help because the programs that were set up to help for exactly these

reasons, well, they said that I made too much money. Almost all of my

money went toward the healthcare benefits that I got through my work.

In addition to paying thousands of dollars a year in premiums, they

wanted me to pay co-pays, deductibles, and a percentage of the costs.

This administration only looked at the healthcare concerns of the

elderly, and even then, their solution cost most people more than what

they were paying before.

 

 

 

For all these things and more, I am truly sorry. I hope that someday,

you might find a way to undo all the damage that your grandparent's

generation, my generation, and most especially, this Administration

have done.

 

 

 

 

 

A Concerned Parent,

 

 

 

Kristin Isler

 

 

In a time of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary

act.-- George Orwell

 

It's better to die on you feet, than to live on your knees – Emilio Zapata

 

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can

change the world. Indeed, it's the only thing that ever has. - -

Margaret Mead