"Demolition Derby"

When I was young, I was introduced to "stock car racing". My Dad took me to "O'Hare Raceway" to watch stock cars, figure "8" races and "demolition derbies". The track was small; I believe it was 1/8 mile long; pretty close quarters. I was about 11 or 12 years old, and the sound of roaring engines, the smell of gasoline and cheering fans was intoxicating. All of the stock car races were first on the program, followed by the figure-8-race then, the demolition derby. My Dad knew one of the stock car drivers and we got to see him after the races were over; I thought this was very cool! But I have to admit, the demolition derby was my favorite race. For those of you who don't know what a demolition derby is, it consists of approximately twenty cars that spend the entire race driving into each other, intent on destroying all opponents to the point of mechanical collapse. The last car able to navigate the track was the winner. The crowd loved this race; crushing blows and twisted metal were everywhere. When an especially good collision took place, the mob cheered wildly. On one particular night, I remember a 1956 Cadillac in the mix; it was in pretty good shape at the start of the race, and out lasted many of its other contenders; finally, it succumbed to the barrage of collisions and stopped dead on the field; a cloud of dust and smoke surrounded it. Although that Cadillac was built to last, it couldn't stand the onslaught of constant attack. The Cadillac was the "King of the Hi-Way" and still is a revered automobile today; power and luxury, a great mix, but even a Cadillac has its limits!

America has been on a pretty good run for the last 230+ years. Our economic system has worked pretty well; as a matter of fact, it has been the envy of the entire world for numerous decades. Our system has been victorious over several recessions and depressions, a tribute to free market capitalism. We have done our best to correct abuses of the system; and there is always room for improvement; but no other economic system on this planet has done a better job for its citizens than free market capitalism. Socialism and communism are proven failures, and continue to fail whenever they are instituted.

Over the course of history, our system has been attacked by every lunatic philosophy and crack-pot theory under the sun. Thankfully, the people of America have used their gifts of common sense and love of individual freedom to discern the idiocy of those other systems. We are currently being given a look at potential socialism in America. What have we learned? We are now facing financial default, and huge national unemployment. We have seen a potential health-care program that threatens our financial stability for several generations, and our foreign policy has become one of subservience to a world organization. It seems America is in a "demolition derby" with a bad system.

My fellow citizens, we must not allow this destruction to take place. We are already feeling the effects of poor leadership from a dedicated ideologue. If we don't act now, and tell our representative (tell, not ask) what we want; America may be that Cadillac left like a smoking hulk on the track, dead, never to run again!