United States of America, the land of the free, the land of opportunity, the
wealthiest country in the world, a country that half the modern world is modeled
after. Our President in referred to as the "Leader of the free world".
Thousands of people come to this country every year learning about our country
in hopes of becoming a citizen. We have what some say the greatest form of
government know to this world, a representative democracy, formed by "We
the People…" The government of the Unites States of America is the most
efficient, most inefficient, safest, most beneficial way to govern a country,
according to its citizens. "Love it or leave it!" (Flieder 1) This was
a statement made referring to the American people and the U.S. Government.
People have many split ideas on the government. The people who know the
government, the ones who read the papers, listen to the politicians, and know
the history of our government, and know how the system works believe in the
government, and the system. They know why things are the way they are. Thirteen
out of the twenty-one people I interviewed believed that our government system
works, yet there is still problems with a few people. The system is hampered by
the few individuals who are corrupt, and don't communicate and listen to the
people."…we've proven that really no other government surpasses us, our
reputation is that of the greatest country ever, but we are still young." (Piccari
1) Also we are a very young country compared to the rest of the world. "Our
government is run as it is suppose to be run" (Casagrand, Robert) the way
the constitution sets it to be run. The constitution is one of the greatest
documents ever written. Very few changes have been made to our constitution
since it was written by the founding fathers. Many countries have based their
government system off our constitution. On the contrary the people who did not
believe in our system, did not know there two U.S. Senators. A few of them did
not know the three branches of the United States government. They don't know the
system, or how it works. How can you complain about something you know very
little about. One of the interviewees, when asked if they have experienced
anything in there life that changed their opinion on the government said that
the french fries were good when he had lunch with President Reagan. It is easily
assumed that this person's view of people and the government are altered by the
quality of the President's french fries. (Wagner 1) Where is the logic in that?
In the quote made by Mr. Saul Flieder above, it is suggested that if you don't
like the system then leave it. If you leave the system is there another system
that you could find that would be better? According to Tom Richards it
"depends on your needs". Not one person I interviewed did know of a
government system that was better then that of the U.S. Government. Do you have
a say in the Government? "Yes if your except responsibility for your say,
Vote." (Piccari 1) Most people did believe that you do have a say in the
government. Their say or voice in the government is in your vote. The few people
who said that they did not have a say in the government are predominantly the
same people who said that they do not vote, yet they are the people who complain
the most. Many Americans complain about problems with our government. As you can
see by this chart in 1966 there were 117 million Americans that were of age to
vote, only 48.6% of those citizens were registered and voted. Less than half the
citizens of this country did not use their right to vote. In 1994 there were 193
million Americans that were of age to vote, but this time only 38.7% of those
citizens were registered and voted. The percentage of voters dropped 9.9% in 31
years. People don't vote for many reasons. One reason is people don't have a
personal interest or any excitement about the candidates. (Magnuson 1) Which is
a very bad reason not to vote. Everyone has a vested interest in the candidates
because the candidates represent you to the state or national government. Even
if voters vote, many of the voters make bad decisions. "We are really
seeing a loss of respect for our federal system of selecting our elected
officials. This disenchantment with the candidates is causing voters to look at
the personalities rather than the issues." (Magnuson 2) Many people also
don't vote because they say, " I only have one vote." True you only
have one vote, and that is all you are going to get. With your one vote, and
your friends one vote, and all there friends' votes, you can make a big
difference. A lot of peoples "one vote" can change a lot. So if you
don't vote don't complain. "It is efficiently inefficient." (Hurst 1)
Is our government inefficient in doing its job? Is our government to efficient?
Robert Casagrand a member of the Hatboro-Horsham School board says the
government is "as efficient as possible with the diverse interests of the
people within the U.S." With the many diverse people in this nation we have
many different opinions. But the real question is, " how efficient do you
want it?" If the government is too efficient thing will happen to quickly,
things could not be properly thought about and all options could not be heard.
If the government is not efficient enough then things would not get done, and
the system would be a waste. What is the best? Or then where is the medium?
"Overall it is the fairest one practiced." Is the U.S. Government
fair? Is the government suppose to be fair? The U.S. government is not suppose
to be fair to everyone. The purpose of the government is to benefit the
majority. It is impossible to please everyone. "You can't please everyone
all the time." (Kipe 1) If the government was fair it would be totally
inefficient. The only way the citizen's opinion on the government is ever going
to change is with knowledge. The people must understand the system and the
people in the system. They must read the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. It
is not our government system that is corrupt, inefficient, efficient, unfair or
closed off, it is the people of this country. Are we "We The People"
or are we "We The Few"? Don't shut your ears, or cover your eyes.
Don't look down the narrow tunnel, look at the big picture.