No, I don't think so. Not Today.

The Founding Fathers used the phrase, "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." it began as the opportunity to achieve greater material prosperity than was possible in their countries of origin. Since that time a dream of a better life has grown into the minds and hearts of Americans as a possibility to achieve anything they put their mind to. The American Dream is the freedom that allows all citizens and most residents of the United States to pursue their goals in life through hard work and free choice, from financial stability to making your kid as smart as he can possibly be. However, it seems to me that the American dream has certainly received quite the butt-kicking in the past few months and people seem to be "waking up."

Jobs are being lost and fathers are not bringing home what is needed to keep the family in a home. Mothers are working part-time at Dress Barn in hopes of keeping their children in the school band - whose funding was lopped in half last year due to budget cuts. Students graduating with degrees and thousands of dollars in debt are moving on to manage the local Hollister in hopes of a steady paycheck and, God willing, insurance. Everyone is trying to make life continue through the hard times. But everyone seems to be lulling away into a sleep of sadness and despair that their is nothing they can do about it, and they are not dreaming of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

Get Up.

The American Dream is not just thinking about life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness - it is actually pursuing it. The American dream is the manager at Hollister deciding to do what he want to do, and what he went to school to learn. It is someone who stands up and says "No, I don't think so. Not today. I do not accept that the economy is bad and that their is nothing that I am to do about it. I do not accept that their are no jobs out there for me at this moment." Make one. Find someone. We cannot sit by and wait for our problems in life to present the solution, sometimes we need to make one.

I am a newly-wed, recent graduate with no money and a dead-end job. I really don't think I have anything go for me right now, nor anywhere to go.

No, I don't think so. Not today.

Stimulating...

Here's an idea.

Why not just cut business taxes? Land, sales, or otherwise. Give them a break, allowing them to lower prices and hire more people? I mean, I don't care how bad the economy is: I found three packages of Chicken (Naturally raised, even) for ten bucks and I bought them without thinking twice! I don't need that much Chicken, but I can't say no to $3.43.

Someone tell me why this wouldn't work. Why create a $1 Trillion stimulus package when I can help the local economy by them just lowering the price of chicken?

Constituency

The newest battle in my life is that between constituency and apathy: I am trying to figure out where my beliefs of the right way of going about things, and my obligation to share that belief run against my feelings that its none of my business how people live there life.

No one asked for my opinion - but those who keep silent never really get anything done, that in addition to they often become entirely apathetic to every cause they ever believed in. On the other hand, my personal constituency has now doubled; to two, and that might be enough for a while.

Maybe politicians do have it the easiest, I mean, they just tell everyone what to do...

The Doctrines of Dry Erase

I came to a conclusion this morning that everything important in life I learned on a whiteboard. The way a learn is by teaching things - and when I teach, there is always a whiteboard within arm's reach. Things in life just make more sense when written in dry erase:

-When I was sixteen, I wrote down a few ideas on a whiteboard about a company I thought would really run the table in the entertainment production. Today I am the director of business development for a new production company based in Los Angeles.

-At the age of 20 somebody asked why I believe in God. After that it was no longer just a belief for me.

-Shortly before I enrolled in college, a friend asked me how to respond to a rough situation he was placed in. A few moments later I hatched my first PR plan, and also a new career.

-In 2003, I watched an episode or E.R. and was completely blown away. I went to my room and wrote a few ideas down and hashed out a new passion for telling a story.

-Anything I that I ever did well in college began life on a whiteboard--except proposing to my wife; but I could have rocked it if I my pre-game was set with markers and an eraser.

-I interned with one of the largest PR firms in the world, but my desk was no where near anything that even resembled a whiteboard, now I know why I never quite hit my stride there, but I hear the offices with windows get the goods.

I just moved into a new place with my very own office right across the hallway, right now I have two white boards mounted-but I am hopeful for one or two more, and a surety of a bright future.