It’s an odd time to live in America.  Despite the fact that the economy is in the tubes for everyone, there seems to be a great divide over the direction the country has taken since about, oh, let’s just use Nov. 4th as a random ‘plucked-from-a-hat’ date.  Half of the country (well, slightly less than half) thinks we’re bringing on the end of the world, that the Communists will overrun us all soon, and take away every last freedom we have.  The other, slightly-larger-than-half of the country is ecstatic, looking at a rebirth after eight years of political and social insanity, and the (ironically enough) removal and suppression of the freedoms we’re supposed to enjoy.

For the last eight years, dissent was traitorous.  The left was the ‘anti-‘ party, ‘anti-American’, ‘anti-Troops’, ‘anti-Freedom,’ according to those in power.  The dissenters dismissed their right-wing opponents as fascists, suppressors of free speech.  The setbacks we suffered at home and abroad in those years shaped the situation we find ourselves in today.  Slowly, the resentment against the direction our country was taking grew, and the balance of power shifted, first slightly in Congress in 2006, and then significantly – and very publicly – in 2008.  That day in November marks one of the greatest political and social swings in history.

But now we find with the new players in power, a strange thing is happening.  Dissent has once again become a bad thing.  Those that aren’t the political majority are “rooting for failure” by not just jumping on board with the new administrations plans (granted, a few are literally doing that, but we won’t dignify those people at the moment).  It seems as if the left has forgotten that for the last eight years, loud and vocal dissent was the only thing they had to keep their political voices in the mainstream.  They asked to be taken seriously and treated fairly, not insulted and ridiculed for their disagreements.

What a mess.  What a tragic, disgusting mess.

This blog is dedicated to dissent and free speech.  It will become very, very obvious very, very quickly that it leans very far to the left; but that doesn’t mean that for the next four years (minimum) there should be a moratorium on dissent.  It’s criticism that keeps us honest, and it’s honesty that keeps us striving for something better.  For those people who always dismissively said, “If you don’t like things in America, why don’t you move?” we respond, “This is my home.  And if I see something broken, I am going to try to fix it.”  That attitude shouldn’t change.  We shouldn’t become lax whether or not we like the people in power.  It’s up to us to keep our eyes pealed and our voices loud when we see something that isn’t right, or could be better.  And if those voices are honest, then we can expect to keep things on track.

So whether it’s national politics, Baltimore news, or something as simple as an opinion of the bar around the corner, expect to find an honest opinion here.

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