Over the past years we have slowly watched as the terms of "enemy combatant", "terrorist", and other such terms have come to encompass the very citizens of the mostly free United States of America. We have seen it become more and more convenient over our history as certain administrations faced opposition from ordinary citizens. The greatest mobilization that met a very strong military backlash (including multiple troop units, calvary, and tanks) was the Bonus Army of the 1930s. War veterans from WWI demanded their bonus pay as the Great Depression took strong effect on their lives and families. Before I go too far on a tangent, the topic of today's step towards a frightening state is the fact that regular citizens with dissenting opinions can and do face state repercussions. The best current example of this is the creation of "Free Speech Zones" at political events. This includes both Democratic and Republican. I know that in many of my posts under the title "fascist america" tend to lean towards examples of Republican or 'Right-leaning' peoples and politicians. The fact of the matter is that while it may be easiest to find example of the overt stomping of civil rights by 'the Right,' it is just as easy to see the silence and inaction of 'the Left' when it comes to challenging what may be deemed wrong.

6. Engage in arbitrary detention and release This scares people. It is a kind of cat-and-mouse game. In a closing or closed society there is a "list" of dissidents and opposition leaders: you are targeted in this way once you are on the list, and it is hard to get off the list.

My family loves showing off their patriotism during the Fourth of July. My mom, for example, has no problem wearing a blue top, red shorts, and white sneakers with her American flag earrings to a cookout. Nevertheless, although I was born and raised in the United States, and accepted my American identity, I realized that from the rest of society didn't necessarily define me as fitting into the latter category. My hair, complexion, eyes, nose, and other physical features meant I was not solely an "American," but a "hyphenated American." Yes, we are familiar with terms including African American, Mexican American, Chinese American, and others, but, I have yet to hear someone referred to as a Caucasian American. Why is that?

 Culture or Development: The Tradeoff

After coming home late with my mom from the a San Francisco precinct, I immediately went online to see the results of the last of the Democratic primaries. Yes, I will confess to breaking out in a happy dance with my mom as we witnessed history in the making. Not solely because the first African-American was selected as the presidential nominee for a major party in our lifetime (though it should be acknowledged that Obama is half Kenyan, half Caucasian); but, what he said, and what he has said throughout his campaign, as well as the public's response to his words.

When talking to my professor and good friend, I got to thinking about tradition today. He had been listening on NPR about summer camps and how the tradition aspect is part of their appeal. One camper was quoted saying, "if it changed, I wouldn't want to come back".

What does that say about our culture? What is so crucial about tradition? It was once new, wasn't it?...

So many people ask: "Is the United States ready for it's first black president?" However I think the real question is, "Will the American people be prepared to recognize the differences that we all share?" The truth of the matter is that we won't have a `black' president if Barak Obama is elected. If Obama is elected he will carry on the great American tradition of presidents who are racially and ethnically mixed. The attempts to stamp our current society with the false vestiges of time will not do. Today is not as black and white as the televisions once used to be.

The other night I attended a student government meeting that dealt with the validity of a certain group on the funding board which is supposed to deal with bringing progressive issues to the campus population. There was a bill in contention to remove this group because it brought in a speaker that was anti-semetic, anti-American, and anti-troops. What I heard that night was a lot of debate that I should have heard a year ago before the controversial event took place. This nine hour meeting made me ponder the true meaning of being progressive.

Just a quick thought I figured I would write down as a diary entry. This morning I was listening to some hip hop and Saul Williams' "African Student Movement" song came on. Part of the chorus is a repitition of 'African people', which for some reason kept sticking in my head. Earlier that morning I had read an article on National Geographic about the discovery of a 36,000 year-old skull proving the 2nd migration of the human race out of Africa.