Letter to the President

Dear Mr. President,

Yesterday marked my first 4th of July celebration. Mama and Papa have told me how important this day was in 1776, as we officially claimed our independence from Britain and Democracy was born. And how important it is that we celebrate this day each year, to give thanks for the history, people and laws that make up this great country of ours.

I may not be able to vote, but the freedoms of citizenship still apply to me. And Mr. President, I have some serious issues with how you are representing America – both at home and abroad. You have used executive orders and privilege, the Patriot Act and the tragedy of 9/11 to grant yourself unprecedented power and immunity from the law. Your waged war in Iraq has further fueled the extremist Muslim movement and in my opinion, made us far less safe as a nation. You have authorized the use of torture, and prosecuted the low level military personnel that carry out your orders. Your policies have killed tens if not hundreds of thousands of Arab civilians, and are responsible for the deaths of 3,586 of our brave soldiers. You’ve destroyed more than the Iraqi people and infrastructure and economy, but also any possibility of stability in the Middle East for generations to come. At home, you’ve managed to invade the privacy of American citizens, kill the writ of habeas corpus, pander to corporations at the expense of the poor and the middle class, and commuted a senior member of your staff convicted of perjury and obstruction of justice in an investigation of a treasonous act. If the pokey is good enough for Paris, it is certainly good enough for Scooter. I not only question your patriotism Mr. President, but your competence, morality and quite honestly, your sobriety.

So this 4th of July as I celebrated our great country - whose reputation you have managed to tarnish around the world - and our freedoms - which you have successfully chiseled away at in your war against terror - I wonder why it is that you have yet to be fired from your job? Am I really supposed to believe that lying about a private indiscretion between consenting adults is a more impeachable offense than the laundry list of violations committed by you? I’m much smarter than that. And I suspect the rest of America is too. You have lost touch with your constituents Mr. President - men and women, young and old, Black and White and Hispanic and Asian, gay and straight, rich and poor, Democrat and Republican. You work for all of us, and very few are happy with the job you are doing.

So come 2009, I look forward to celebrating Independence Day twice. On the 4th of July of course, but also on January 9, when a new President will be sworn in and America will be free from the reign of you and your administration.

A Very Concerned Patriot,
Avery Lorraine