Two America's

With the recent departure from the presidential race of John Edwards, this may not be as timely as it could be, but I still think the observations are pertinent . One of Senator Edwards main themes has been that of "Two America's". Of course John Edwards view is that there is a rich America and a poor America. A priveleged America and a downtrodden America. Most of the commentators that I hear and read vehemently deny this. I do believe that Mr. Edwards does have a point. However, I would paint the picture of Two Americas slightly differently.


I beleive that there are Two Americas that stand in stark contrast to each other, and they can be found in the minds of the people.


One group of people see an America that was founded by men of faith, with high ideals, and was a great force for good in the world. They see an America that was a Christian nation with Christian morals. They see our present nation as one that is at a crossroads, facing a crisis of societal decline. They can't help but see the fight over abortion rights, illegal immigration, gay marriage (and all the rest of it) as a sign of this country coming to the end of its greatness. They worry that the future of America is bleak, and yet they love what it once was and the remants of that grand republic that remain. They hate what they are afraid America may turn into.


Another group of people see an America that was founded by greedy white men that stole the land and enslaved and oppressed anyone not of their creed or color. They see an America that used the Bible and religeon to justify that theft, slavery and oppression. They see our present nation as one that is at a crossroads, facing a crisis of these "fundamentalist" Christians standing in the way of human and humane progress. They can't help but see the fight over abortion rights, illegal immigration, gay marriage (and all the rest of it) as the last stand of the backward "puritan" oligarchy that is afraid of losing its power over the oppressed. They know that the history of America is disgraceful, and yet they love what it can be in the future, and the parts they have managed to change so far. They hate what they are convinced America once was.


Of course the truth of the matter is somewhere in between the Two Americas that lie in the minds of these two groups. The true America of the past was neither so moral and just as the one group sees her, nor as dispicable and evil as the other does. The America of the future is surely not going to be the man made utopia that the one group envisions, and hopefully it will never be the moral wasteland that the other group foresees.