"'Jay Leno' Hits the Nail on the Head"

Folks... I'm afraid I can't let this piece of propaganda slip by without a response.

For one thing - it was written by Craig Smith. Only the last phrase comes from Jay Leno (as part of his comedy routine.) Regardless of who wrote it - though I do think it's an important note considering that Leno invades the millions of American homes on a nightly basis - it deserves a response... in fact, demands a response. We who are among the 67% of Americans who are unhappy with the direction the country is headed are obligated to respond and to clarify our happiness. Here's my stab at it:

Do you really think that people in the US are complaining about all that they have?

Please don't be that naive. Americans are not unsatisfied with their quality of life. They are uncomfortable - in fact, unwilling to accept - the idea that their physical comfort must come at the cost of millions of others' lives, freedoms, and opportunities.

Maybe the 67% of people who are unhappy aren't the ones who think that their freedom has to come at the expense of the freedom of others. Maybe those people have taken the time to consider that the other 6.5 billion people in the world are also PEOPLE who have as much right to the riches of the world -- to fresh water, clean air, trees, the beauty of a sunny spring day... not to mention life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

Maybe so many Americans are unhappy because they actually take time to THINK about what's going on in the WORLD rather than only what's going on in their own INDIVIDUAL lives...

... and when they do that, they realize that life is about more than just being happy as an individual person. Perhaps they are even bold enough to accept that the happiness they experience each and every day because of the physical luxuries they have is because the US is systematically undermining the capacity for people around the world to have a simple, decent life...

... perhaps those 69% of the people who are unhappy with the President's performance get that his approach to foreign policy (as well as that of Clinton, Bush Sr, and Reagan) is causing problems. BIG problems. Perhaps they see how so much focus on money, the economy, trade agreements, and tax-cuts for the wealthy are further tearing apart the fragile social fabric in the US and around the world...

... maybe those people who are unhappy realize that happiness doesn't come from physical comfort... that human needs are NOT wealth, power, influence, and flamboyance... but rather that HUMAN NEEDS ARE subsistence, affection, identity, understanding, protection, participation, creation, idleness, and freedom... and that these human needs are consistently undermined by a President and his administration and other like-minded individuals that have no grasp of history nor the fact that those who don't study and understand history are doomed to repeat it...

... perhaps these people realize that as long as America is actively extending the gap between quality of life in the US and quality of life elsewhere around the world, citizens of the US will never be safe. Instead, these frustrated Americans want to know that in living their own lives, they are allowing people in all corners of the world to also live their lives...

... in a world that is ever-shrinking, the US can not afford to be a lonely winner. It MUST support other peoples in 'winning' also, primarily by allowing people everywhere to rise to the occasion and participate freely and effectively in the global system...

... maybe the 69% of people who are unhappy are that way because they understand that they are being duped by special interests into having arguments about "taking God out of the Pledge of Allegiance." Folks - study your history. Get a clue. God's inclusion in the Pledge is not the issue we should be talking about. Neither are, unfortunately for our political system, hot-button issues like gay marriage and abortion. Again, GET A CLUE.

... it's time that we start talking about what is important to our future, and the future of kids and our grandkids and further generations to come. It's time that we start talking about how the US can offer a positive vision for what the future can look like by respecting the environment that provides all life-giving services -- whether it's the air that we breathe, the water that we drink, or the food that we eat; the WORLD NEEDS the US to provide a vision for taking care of its people in a way that can be replicated around the world.

Yes -- by all means people in America should be HAPPY for the blessings they have. But Americans MUST NOT be CONTENT with that... America still has a LONG way to go. The world needs the US's leadership now as much as ever. Just as the Good is the enemy of the Great - so complacency in America is the thing that will hold her back from being all that was envisioned by the founders and all that is dreamt about each and every day by our children and grandchildren.

MAYBE... JUST MAYBE... 2 OUT OF 3 AMERICANS ARE UNHAPPY BECAUSE THEY ARE TIRED OF AMERICANS FOCUSING SOLELY ON THEIR OWN HAPPINESS.

If the note from "Jay Leno" (below) "hits the nail on the head," then I hope this message drives that nail deep enough to awaken your head AND your heart. Not only should Americans, as "Jay" says "thank God several times a day, or at least be thankful and appreciative;" WE should ALSO strive to ensure that others around the world have the opportunities that we have... or at least that we aren't PREVENTING them from having those opportunities.

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Subject: Fwd: FW: [Fwd: Fw: Jay Leno "Hits the nail on the head."]

"The other day I was reading Newsweek magazine and came across some poll data I found rather hard to believe. It must be true given the source, right?

The Newsweek poll alleges that 67 percent of Americans are unhappy with the direction the country is headed and 69 percent of the country is unhappy with the performance of the president. In essence 2/3s of the citizenry just ain't happy and want a change.

So being the knuckle dragger I am, I started thinking,''What we are so unhappy about?''

Is it that we have electricity and running water 24 hours a day, 7 days a week? Is our unhappiness the result of having air conditioning in the summer and heating in the winter? Could it be that 95.4 percent of these unhappy folks have a job? Maybe it is the ability to walk into a grocery store at any time and see more food in moments than Darfur has seen in the last year?

Maybe it is the ability to drive from the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic Ocean without having to present identification papers as we move through

each state? Or possibly the hundreds of clean and safe motels we would

find along the way that can provide temporary shelter?

I guess having thousands of restaurants with varying cuisine from around the world is just not good enough. Or could it be that when we wreck our car, emergency workers show up and provide services to help all and even send a helicopter to take you to the hospital.

Perhaps you are one of the 70 percent of Americans who own a home. You may be upset with knowing that in the unfortunate case of a fire, a group of trained firefighters will appear in moments and use top notch equipment to extinguish the flames thus saving you, your family and your belongings.

Or if, while at home watching one of your many flat screen TVs, a burglar or prowler intrudes , an officer equipped with a gun and a bullet-proof vest will come to defend you and your family against attack or loss. This all in the backdrop of a neighborhood free of bombs or militias raping and pillaging the residents. Neighborhoods where 90 percent of teenagers own cell phones and computers.

How about the complete religious, social and political freedoms we enjoy that are the envy of everyone in the world? Maybe that is what has 67 percent of you folks unhappy.

Fact is, we are the largest group of ungrateful, spoiled brats the world has ever seen. No wonder the world loves the U.S., yet has a great disdain for its citizens. They see us for what we are. The most blessed people in the world who do nothing but complain about what we don't have, and what we hate about the country instead of thanking the good Lord we live here.

I know, I know. What about the president who took us into war and has no plan to get us out? The president who has a measly 31 percent approval

rating? Is this the same president who guided the nation in the dark

days after 9/11? The president that cut taxes to bring an economy out of recession? Could this be the same guy who has been called every name in the book for succeeding in keeping all the spoiled ungrateful brats safe from terrorist attacks?

The commander in chief of an all-volunteer army that is out there defending you and me? Did you hear how bad the President is on the news or talk show? Did this news affect you so much, make you so unhappy you couldn't take a look around for yourself and see all the good things and be glad?

Think about it......are you upset at the President because he actually caused you personal pain OR is it because the "Media" told you he was failing to kiss your sorry ungrateful behind every day

Make no mistake about it. The troops in Iraq and Afghanistan have volunteered to serve, and in many cases may have died for your freedom.

There is currently no draft in this country. They didn't have to go.

They are able to refuse to go and end up with either a ''general''

discharge, an ''other than honorable'' discharge or, worst case scenario, a ''dishonorable'' discharge after a few days in the brig.

So why then the flat-out discontentment in the minds of 69 percent of Americans? Say what you want but I blame it on the media. If it bleeds it leads and they specialize in bad news. Everybody will watch a car crash with blood and guts. How many will watch kids selling lemonade at the corner? The media knows this and media outlets are for- profit corporations. They offer what sells, and when criticized, try to defend

their actions by "justifying" them in one way or another. Just ask why

they tried to allow a murderer like O.J. Simpson to write a book about how he didn't kill his wife, but if he did he would have done it this way......Insane!

Stop buying the negativism you are fed everyday by the media. Shut off the TV, burn Newsweek , and use the New York Times for the bottom of your bird cage. Then start being grateful for all we have as a country. There is exponentially more good than bad.

We are among the most blessed people on Earth and should thank God several times a day, or at least be thankful and appreciative."

"With hurricanes, tornados, fires out of control, mud slides, flooding, severe thunderstorms tearing up the country from one end to another, and with the threat of bird flu and terrorist attacks, "Are we sure this is a good time to take God out of the Pledge of Allegiance?"