I Love My Country, but I Abhore "my" Government

With all the news items about the heightened degree of police enforcement aimed at the quelling of potential "problems" with dissent, civil disobedience has rather tamed since the days of the Chicago 7 and the officially-proclaimed terrorist organizations. The marches of people for recognition of important social issues has become the standard form of activism these days and certainly more subdued than the Syboneses organization to which Patty Hearst once claimed allegience. "Our" Government's current "leaders" have convinced the American populace that the terror comes from outside agitors and zealots. But what of the terror to our citizens that involves police action to impair and hinder our Constitutional rights to speach and assembly. Voices of dissent rang in glorified chorus by our Founding Fathers. Whether there had been unanimous approval of a strong federal government by all of the heroic figures, one can certainly agree that our Bill of Rights gave the power to the people and for the people. I can only assert my power to claim these rights through speaking my voice and demonstrating my position. What better way to create dialog. Hopefully by speaking clearly and effectively, we can influence the direction of things. Often (but not enough) our voices force revelation and exposure of the corrupt and secret cartel that currently sit in power. Notwithstanding some ugly stains on American History (Wounded Knee, McCarthy Hearings, My Lai, to name barely a few) I have always loved the spirit in which my country corrected its bad behavior, such as the evolvement from the days of water cannons on early African-American strugglers, to the passage of the Civil Rights Act 1964 signed by President L. Johnson. The amendments are a direct result of activism and protest. (Marchs for Civil Rights, Women's Rights, Indigeneous People's Rights.) Now why would protest/demonstration, fostered by dissent, be any less a display of patriotism. In fact, as Robert Kennedy (1925 - 1968)said , "[I]t is from numberless diverse acts of courage and belief that human history is shaped. Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope, and crossing each other from a million different centers of energy and daring, those ripples build a current that can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance."
Something is wrong with our government's policy that clearly inhibits our hard-won civil liberties. We have to address injustice, inequity and corruption. We are the People and We love our Country. That is the voice of Patriotism. Cry, my beloved Country.
in Solidarity
Blondie