Hello everybody,

I just came across this little text in an online magazine. Would like to know what you think of it.

Here it goes:


Well, Arlo . . .

By Budd Saunders
Online Journal Contributing Writer


September 17, 2005—"This land is your land, this land is my land . . ." Woody Guthrie wrote that song years ago. Some years later his son Arlo wrote another song about this land of ours, "Ridin' on the City of New Orleans. Illinois Central Monday morning blues. 15 cars, 15 restless riders and 25 sacks of mail . . . Halfway home and we'll be there by morning thru the Mississippi darkness rolling down to the sea. But all the towns and people seem to fade into a bad dream and the steel rail still ain't heard the news . . ." [Correction: Astute readers have pointed out that "City of New Orleans" was written by Steve Goodman not Arlo Guthrie who recorded it.]

And Arlo asks, "Good morning, America, how are you?" Well, Arlo, I'll try to answer that question.

Once upon a time . . .

You know our president has done some great things. He says our economy is robust and exciting. And it is. Sure, the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer. But the rich spend their money and invest it. They create jobs for the poor. Someone has to build their yachts, their mansions and upscale office buildings. It takes a working man to build those and the jobs they create.

Some naysayers object to foreigners coming across our borders to work. All of these people, who are saying that those foreigners are taking jobs from Americans, are lying, Arlo. Those foreigners work for less doing jobs no American will do, and this gives the employers more money to invest in building. It's un-American to demand a living wage when the rich can create more capital by paying less.

And, Arlo, you just wouldn't believe it. We have a president with a backbone of steel. He has declared global war on all them Godless Muslims over there in the Middle East. He went into Iraq after their WMD. They're there, Arlo, President Bush wouldn't lie to the American people.

Arlo, he has a lot of wonderful people working for him. Our vice president, Richard Cheney, Mr. Karl Rove, Dr. Condoleezza Rice and our secretary of defense, Donald Rumsfeld. All of them are war leaders, even though not a one of them ever served in combat.

I've heard our president declare to the Muslims, "Bring 'em on!" And they've brought themselves on. But Secretary Rumsfeld, he's ready for them.

And you know, Arlo, there's some people out there who protest the war where our boys are fighting for our freedoms in Iraq, Afghanistan and the Balkans. Mr. Bush, he told us that it was better to fight them over there than here at home, and he's right. But we're prepared to fight them right here if need be, just like we were ready to save New Orleans. We've got the USA PATRIOT Act that gives our government authority to fight the terrorists right here at home.

There's some people out there protesting our president's crusade against our enemies to make America safe and free. Why, he said the world is a safer and freer place since he became president and that we are winning the war against the "evildoers." And I believe him, Arlo. He's the president of these United States. He wouldn't lie to us.

I'm proud to be an American. Thank God! I'm an American and have such a strong war leader as our president. All of those hippie war protesters out there, they don't love America. And I say if they don't love America, they can just leave.

They say our leaders sent our people over to fight without proper equipment. That's not true, Arlo. That equipment was what we needed to get rid of. It was outdated and we had to find out if it was really what our military needed.

And Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld knows a lot about war. They should change his title to Secretary of War. He has a vision for the future of our military. He wants to streamline it to respond to trouble all over the world, when the enemy threatens our freedoms or attacks our country like Iraq did. Some say the Saudis did, but the Saudis are close friends of our president and wouldn't do that. Arlo, when the enemy sees how we spread democracy, all of the other countries will want freedoms too.

Secretary Rumsfeld said it was worth the casualties because Iraq was free and he's right. He has a vision just like our president.

The little children in Baghdad are skipping happily off to school and playing at recess. The people are dancing and singing in the streets and going to movies. There's car bomb explosions, mortar rounds and gunfire that kills a bunch of them now and then, but you know freedom ain't free. But the streets are safe.

Speaking of streets reminds me that the streets of New Orleans are sort of filled with water. It's a disaster in that city but our president has taken charge. He flew out west and gave some talks then he flew to his White House and thought about New Orleans. Why, Arlo, he even flew down there looked at the war and devastation and flew back to D.C. He got a Marine 1 and took charge. He even went to New Orleans. He's a brave man. He's not only a war leader, he takes charge of disasters in our country. Don't you just love him and admire him and all of the wonderful things his vision for our country has achieved? Boy, I sure do.

"Once upon a time . . ." Arlo, did you ever notice that's the opening line of fairy tales?

But sometimes a story starts out, "This is no bull. . . ."

God, I'm proud to be an American. Now, would somebody with some kind of guts in Washington introduce a resolution to:

IMPEACH BUSH!

Question authority. It's the American Way.

Uh, gee, umm, shuffle-shuffle, Arlo didn't write City of New Orleans. Steve Goodman did. Oh, and Bush is responsible, so blame him.

Um,..... where do I begin? (Maybe I shouldn't).

"The rich get richer and the poor get poorer"?

..... Not in America. America is the only country in the world where the "poor" are obese.

"It's better to fight them over there than over here"? ..... Well, if they bring the fight to US, we are DEFENDING ourselves. When WE bring it to THEM,..... we're the bad guy.

The "Patriot Act" assaults more of America's freedoms and invalidates the Constitution worse than any terrorist ever could. Have you read it?

"I'm proud to be an American"... Yeah, many of us are, but there's a difference between being an American, and being a sheep.

"The Saudis are friends of our President"..... Is that why they and the rest of the OPEC nations are punishing us with $72.00 barrels of $20.00 oil? NONE of those Muslum nations want America to occupy any territory in that region,... and although they continue to remain friendly to our presence, they're retalliating against our intrusion by gouging the price of oil. Why?..... because (in their own words),..... because America is a wealthy nation and can AFFORD to pay these prices.

"Secretary Rumsfeld said it was worth the casualties, because Iraq was free"..... Hmmm, and what if all of Bush's objectives in Iraq are eventually met, and Iraq becomes a new Paradise and a model for all other countries in the world to behold? And where will we be? A bankrupt nation, collapsing under the weight of our overwhelming debt. Over a cache of WMD's that never even existed?

Sorry,..... I usually try to stay out of such debates. (Sometimes it's tough to just hold your tongue).

I've said my piece, this will not become a heated debate..... I'm finished with it.