Though Senator and Presidential Candidate Barack Obama said his choice of words were not the best, I agree with his first assessment. Not only am I bitter, but I am mad as hell! That does not mean I have no hope, as a matter of fact it makes me more determined to work with our new President to improve conditions in whatever way I can.

This Administration has led us into a depressive recession which has left the American people in the worst financial state since the Great Depression.

Let me itemize why I am bitter and mad as hell. First, there is this illegally declared war based on false premises. In addition to the astronomical financial cost of this war, there is the great HUMAN toll, the loss of the lives of so many of our young service people. Many thousands suffering from both mental and physical deterioration. Some of them come home looking like robots with artificial limbs to replace the good limbs that God gave them. To compound the problem they have to fight for proper diagnoses and treatments of their diseases, especially if their maladies are caused by post-traumatic syndrome. How many countless innocent Iraqi women and children have either been killed or displaced? They are human beings, too. All life is valued and valuable.

The cost of the war has caused this devastating economic debacle that we are faced with where thousands of homes are being foreclosed causing a devaluation of other area properties.

Despite the fact that we are pouring tons of money into Iraq, a lot of the money is being misspent, misappropriated, misused and unaccounted for. All the while we are neglecting the American tax payer who is paying dearly for this war. Has Haliburton ever reimbursed our treasury for over billing the U. S. government? If so, why don’t the American people know about it. We need an accounting of that money because it belongs to us.

Next. there is the collapse of many financial institutions where mismanagement and greed have caused them to fail; and yet, the CEO’s who presided over this chaos leave with astounding severance pay. The employees of these companies and the investors are left holding the empty bag. Never have there been so many banks and financial institutions to fail since the Great Depression.

Unemployment is rampant; and, the few jobs there are, are in the fast food industry or the service industry where workers are paid minimum wages and usually with no benefits or chances for advancement. It is painful to see some of our best jobs being out sourced with no comparable jobs replacing them. I want to buy American, but almost everything in the stores, whether they are clothing or household goods, are made outside this country. It pains me when I see to many foreign cars while American automobile manufacturers are having to suspend operations in their plants across the country. The manufacturing industry was a route to the middle class for people without a lot of formal education. The trades provided them a good standard of living.

Now, let’s look at the failure of government oversight responsibilities to monitor industries. Their failure has caused us to import goods and services that are harmful to humans and their pets. What about the safety of our children who are exposed to excessive lead in these imported toys from China? What about the safety of our airline industry where passenger lives could be in jeopardy because of failure of oversight?

We are allowing our infrastructure to become obsolete and unsafe because we are spending billions of dollars attempting to restore and rebuild what we have destroyed in Iraq.

Many American schools are turning out test takers and not students who will be competent enough to compete in this global economy. Education is under-funded. Many schools are outdated, filled with asbestos and ill equipped, especially in the inner cities. Many students graduate unable to comprehend basic math, science, reading and writing skills. We are lagging behind the education systems of China, Japan, India and Germany. In many of these countries the children are at least bi-lingual and many are multi-lingual. Many American children are not even proficient in their own English language.

As Shakespeare says, …..”let me count the ways……”

It is for these and many other reasons that I am bitter and mad as hell because I see the American people being short changed; and that is neither just or fair.

I must address the ridiculous statements of both presidential candidates calling Senator Obama elitist and out of touch with the people. Nothing could be further from the truth. It’s just that, unlike the other two, Senator Obama speaks the truth which is often hard to hear. There is no point in sugar coating the conditions in this country. That is why Senator Obama is running because he is committed to make the necessary changes to bring us back to our glory days when American people lived better than most people in the world, where America was respected and even envied by many of the world’s people who tried to model our successes. It is because Senator Obama knows from personal experience what it means not to be privileged, he is bonding with, has established rapport with, and is determined to elevate the status of ordinary people by bringing an end to this war. He will bring our troops home so they can tend to their homes and families and provide for them. Regardless of how Hillary and McCain try to spin things, thinking Americans knew exactly what he meant.

How ludicrous is it for a woman whose worth since leaving the White House is one hundred nine million dollars and a man who married a woman whose family made a fortune in beer distribution? Obviously, they have never heard the statement Abe Lincoln made along time ago, “You can fool all of the people some of the time, but you can’t fool all of the people all of the time.” Initially, McCain said people who were losing their homes were irresponsible
and the government should not bail them out, all the while supporting bailing out financial institutions which were mismanaged.

Let’s all just get real and admit that we are not pleased with the way this Administration has led us down the garden path. It is time for the CHANGE THAT WE CAN BELIEVE IN WITH SENATOR BARACK OBAMA.

For Further Information: Contact: Helen L. Burleson, Doctor of Public Administration
(708)747-0919