Ashton+D's+Final+AmEx+2015+Speech


 * We are Weak **

We are weak, over sensitive, and thin skinned. Long gone are the days where people were true. Today we find every little thing offensive. We think people can be “free” as long as it doesn’t affect others. We have lost the independence and courage to be who we want to be, not who others want us to be.  Take the pizza company in Indiana for example. They simply refused to cater a gay wedding based on their beliefs. What happened next is shocking; the state of Indiana changed its laws, making it nearly impossible for any business to refuse service to anyone. Sure refusing to serve somebody is rude and very mean, but that is their freedom. And quite frankly, suppressing one's freedom for someone else’ is corrupt and unjust. Or what about the multiple events where people were forced to take off or take down their American flag because people got “offended”. Example 1: A news article reads “Man told to take down American flag because it may be considered a ‘threat to the Muslim community’.” This dude in TEXAS, hung his American flag off his apartment, and got told to take it down! In case anyone was wondering, Texas is located within the United States. So how in the world does the flag of the country you reside in threaten your community? Quite possibly it is your time to find a different home. Example 2: A news article states "We were then told that it was for political reasons and that the flag could offend foreign people that live here, foreign exchange students," Smith said… who lives in San Diego. This college kid was casually flying his flag when he was told to remove it. Every time I read this, a portion of brain cells shrivel into nothingness. If the American flag offends a foreigner, I’m not entirely sure what they are even doing here? Example 3: A news article claims “York Comprehensive High School student Peyton Robinson was not happy after being told to remove his American flag from the back of his truck.” This high school student was driving with the American flag in the bed of his pickup, as many people do. Refusing to take it down he went off to class, the school supervisors then proceeded to trespass climbing into the back of his truck and forcefully taking it down. The supervisors claimed it was for “safety reason”, as we all know that is a load of B.S., it was later revealed there had been complaints from other students who said it was offensive. These are just a few of the events that truly discriminate Americans, in AMERICA. Today people stomp on the flag and we find justification, yet people fly the flag and they get told to take it down? Remember the days, back in elementary when we recited the Pledge of Allegiance every day? Those were the days. I recently went to the Santa Maria Elks Rodeo, at the very beginning I noticed people looking to the sky, curiously I looked up to notice a man floating in the sky. As he soared like an eagle he had a very large flag strapped to his feet. When he got to the ground, something like 25 men rushed to keep every inch of the flag off the ground. This is the way it needs to be. But it’s not. We allow fellow, dare I say Americans, to disgrace the flag and what it represents. Our ways of thinking have slid so far to the left wing, the Jet of America is spiraling down the totem pole of power. Not only are we anti-American pride we are so stupid as to think that America is not number 1. Now, I will admit that I have fallen under the assumption that WE are no longer the greatest nation on this earth, but then the patriot inside me denied it. The US has the greatest economy. We have the highest incarceration rate, what can I say, we try our best to punish criminals. We know how to have the most fun and live life to the fullest, we have 75 guns per 100 people, we drink the most soda, and we are the leading jortz wearers. 80% of citizens, the most of all countries, say the US is their favorable place to live. We produce the most corn in the world, who doesn’t love corn? We spend more money on government schools than any other country, and our students go to school longer than any other students. We produced the number 1 best selling solo artist… yeah that’s right we have Elvis. We produce more oil than Saudi Arabia, and more natural gas than anyone else. We created: Google, Yahoo, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Wikipedia, and Amazon, the most used websites in the world. We have the top 5 biggest companies in the world, and Wal-Mart! We have 8 of the 10 top universities in the world, including Harvard which scores a 100 on the global ranking scale. Our poverty is only 14% as opposed to Mexico's 45%, Sweden’s 26%, China’s 33%, and even Germany’s 15%. Within our citizens in poverty, at least 75% own a car, 97% own a colored TV, 2/3rds have a microwave and a building with an AC. To say the least, even our lowest citizens still live a better life than most in other countries. Yes, we are not perfect, but how dare you say the United States of America is not number ONE. However on a more serious note, we are soft. In schools we suspend both the victim and the culprit. We teach kids to get adult help if they are getting bullied. We discourage violence and think words are the only solution. But explain to me how a teacher telling a bully to stop, prevents the one suffering from committing suicide a month later. No matter what happens to the bully, the victim still feels worthless, incapable, and the equivalent to a rock. Our efforts obviously don’t work, as some 160,000 kids stay home everyday due to bullying. There is a reason 14 percent of teen think about suicide, and a whopping 7 percent attempt it. We still have almost 4,400 people committing suicide every year. We need to change our ways. We need to start telling kids to stand up to their bully. Honestly I couldn’t care less about what happens to a bully. We need to encourage kids to kick the living crap out of their bully, smash their face into a locker, hit them upside the face with a bat, or kick their teeth down their throat. Whatever it is, don't end your own life because a worthless piece of trash tries to make it miserable. This may sound cynical, but honestly if that bully has to eat hamburgers with a straw for the rest of their worthless life, I can guarantee you; they will no longer be a bully. We are so over sensitive. We think that prison is cruel and should be easier on the inmates. We think the death penalty is inhumane, and it should be outlawed. I think we need to be stricter with criminals, more harsh, after all they are nuisance to society.

The America I wish to die in is an America of freedom, standing up for who you are, being who you want to be, and respecting your country. I want a country where it's your right to stomp the flag, yes, but it is my right to stomp your throat. However I want to grow old in a land where people don't get so butt hurt when they get denied service at a restaurant, or when people protest their events, or when people mock them. Now I’m not encouraging segregation, I’m not encouraging people to be mean or rude, however I am encouraging a land of strong willed people, proud of who they are and of what they believe in. By no means am I saying these thing are good and should be practiced, I’m saying that there will always be those radicals, so don’t punish them; let them have their rights as well. I want to see an America with a spine, a spine of steel. I want to see an America where the citizens have skin thicker than a rhino. I want to live and die in the America it was intended to be.


 * Cite your sources **

[|__https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZpDjxIPpFc__] [|__http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2014/07/03/21-maps-and-charts-that-prove-america-is-number-one/__] [|__http://archive.lewrockwell.com/rep3/is-america-number-one.html__] [|__http://www.businessinsider.com/charts-to-make-you-proud-to-be-an-american-2014-7__] [|__http://www.usnews.com/education/best-global-universities/rankings__] [|__http://www.povertyusa.org/the-state-of-poverty/poverty-facts/__] [|__http://www.bullyingstatistics.org/content/bullying-and-suicide.html__] [|__http://toprightnews.com/wont-believe-mans-landlord-told-displayed-american-flag-video/__] [|__http://www.wcnc.com/story/news/local/2015/05/14/york-teen-told-to-remove-american-flag-from-vehicle-due-to-school-policy/27289405/__]
 * [|__http://www.breitbart.com/california/2014/09/20/college-student-forced-to-remove-american-flag-from-balcony-could-offend-foreign-people/__] **