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Hoho hoho.
Copying a banner this guy made meh.
 
When you visualize your fic, do you picture it as anime, live action, or what?

Yup, more FFL topics.
 
As are you, in my opinion.

...I'm constantly switching between here and Bulbagarden forums, and this was a post I made on the "Person above you" thread over there.
 
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I. INTRODUCTION

OK, so even though you're a very patriotic American, you believe that the United States of America could be a whole lot better. That's why you vote for the politicians you vote for: so that the lawmakers can impose your ideas about what America should be on everyone else!

However, is that the right thing to do? I mean, can all 50 states and all the different kinds of people live well in ONE idea of America?

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II. CONTEXT

If you go back to America's revolutionary roots, there was a constant war between the rights of sovereign states and the idea of a united nation. Because this issue is one that wasn't meant to get resolved, the founding fathers finally developed a system of checks and balances: delegating certain powers to the federal government to promote national unity and reserving the other powers to the states so that they can retain their individual sovereignties.

Fourscore and seven years later (and the events leading up to it), the limits of this balance of power were crossed. The Southern states were consistently bullied by the Northern states into accepting the Northern states' interests as their own. What started as nullification resulted in secession followed by a war that would settle the debate once and for all.

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III. POWER DRAIN

Unfortunately, things like abolitionism and the civil rights movement slowly took away powers from the states and gave them to the federal government. For example, Abe Lincoln illegally detained dissenters from the south so that he could impose his idea of America on all the secessionists. Whether or not you agree with his actions, you have to admit that he overstepped the boundaries of his constitutional powers countless times, with or without cause. Congress resorted to unconstitutional means to fuel both radical reconstruction and the civil rights legislation.

The Supreme Court is also in on it. Though the years they have interpreted away significant chunks of most of the rights we Americans think we enjoy. I will freak out if they uphold the new FISA amendments...

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IV. DIFFERENCES

What IS America? Who are we? With so many different states and so many different people, there is no comprehensible way that you can draft a one size fits all idea about what America is. I mean, let's say a hypothetical foreigner (Osama Al-Sayedi of Egypt) is an Egyptian Sunni Muslim. If you ask him what he thinks about America, he'll give you one idea of what America is and assume that an overwhelming majority of Americans will fit that description. Then you bring him to the United States, and it's a completely different country than what he had imagined. He travels to all fifty states and sees that every state is unique in its culture, customs, people, etc.. He travels to all 67 counties in Pennsylvania and sees that they're not all the same people with the same ideas. He goes to Philadelphia and Pittsburgh and the people there are completely different. Even Bucks and Montgomery Counties appear to differences comparable to the differences between the cities, states, and even countries of the world.

So you see, that's why you can't have a one size fits all idea of what America is. I mean, the differences between Alabama and California could be as drastic as the differences between the United States of America and Canada.

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V. STATE WARS TODAY

The following are some lower level laws, many of which are completely opposed by the federal government. Even though the states have the power to impose these kinds of laws, the Supreme Court has interpreted away these rights, so they will always have to worry about the feds breathing down their necks.

-California made all forms of affirmative action illegal
-Same-sex civil unions are recognized by three states
-South Dakota outlaws abortion as a criminal offense in almost all cases
-Arizona passed draconian laws against companies that hire illegal aliens
-Gay adoptions are not only banned in Oklahoma, but if gay couples move to Oklahoma their adoption is automatically invalidated.
-Smokers in Denver are allowed to smoke marijuana in the smoking sections of public buildings
-Marijuana is legal for medicinal purposes in several states, with some places having vending machines

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VI. THE ELECTORATE

You can't just blame the federal government for all of this. After all, who are the ones constantly lobbying for these kinds of changes to the country as a whole and not in individual places? THE AMERICAN PEOPLE, THAT'S WHO!!! We shouldn't be blaming the federal government for all of our problems; we should be blaming ourselves for imposing our views as the infinite truth of the universe on the other 300 million people!

Let me explain. If you have strong views on abortion, you will lobby federal politicians for a constitutional amendment that permanently bans or allows abortion in all 50 states and territories. If you have strong feelings on what the legal definition of what marriage is, you will lobby federal politicians for a constitutional amendment that permanently defines what a marriage is and what a marriage isn't in all 50 states and territories. These kinds of polarizing issues are the ones that Americans have been bickering back and forth about for over two hundred years!

We always complain about the federal government not being powerful enough. The federal government shouldn't be this powerful! Every time the government fails (*cough*KATRINA*cough*), the answer shouldn't be to expand the federal bureaucracy.

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VII. SOLUTION

Wake up, America! Why can't you accept the fact that everyone's different? This kind of senseless bickering is the thing that is leading us to our eventual demise as a nation. Do we really want another Civil War?

If you have an issue that you would like to get resolved, then you should move to another state, county, city, suburb, or neighborhood. If you won't do that, lobby your Mayor, County Commissioner, Governor, or Congressman. However, don't impose your idea on everyone else as a one size fits all idea of what America all 300 million people will live with. Doing either of those things won't make you any less American. In fact, it will make you MORE of an American if you're willing to adapt yourself to an idea of America that you agree with as opposed to destroying everyone else's america.

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VIII. MY AMERICA

My idea of America is not Democratic or Republican. My idea of America is not Christian or secular. In my view of America, you can have places such as

-Redneckland (Alabama)
-Caleefornee Reepublic
-Jeesussippi
-The Middle of Nowhere (Kansas)
-Oldsylvania
-Porker's Paradise (Alaska)
-Taxation Without Representation (D.C.)
-Sin City (Las Vegas)
-Jesusland/Confederate States of America
-United States of Canada

and not just a one size fits all view of America. Remember, there are more than fifty Americas, at least on the state level. There are even more on lower levels.

Differences exist on every level, and together these differences reinforce our views and promote American national unity. Despite the fact that everybody's different, if you're willing to defend other people's rights, then they'll come stick up for you when your rights are in danger.

So folks, let's all try to be more understanding of how the other people live. They're not any less American than we are.

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Yes, I actually posted that in my blog. That's why it was in the clipboard.
 
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Welcome! Did you also come hear because of Zel's famous hack?

Don't just come here to watch the Hacks Showcase. There are plenty of other things for you to do here. After a few weeks of posting you will feel right at home as a regular.

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I was welcoming a newbie.
 
Take a sex ed class, watch some seedy movies, and then try again!

Er...Well!
I was...quoting this guy in the FFL. 'nuff said.
 
Group 1
African Wild Dogs - 20
Wolf - 30 +
Coyote - 14
Fox - 22
Bear - 6 -
Jaguar - 20
Lion - 18
White Lion - 30
Tiger - 20
White Tiger - 22
Cheetah - 22
Ocelot - 16

Group 2
Meerkat - 18
Koala - 22
Kangaroo - 18
Monkey - 22
Elephant - 20
Rhino - 20
Bat - 22
Snake - 38 +
Antelope - 22
Gazelle - 20
Giraffe - 18
Warthog - 0 -

Group 3
Hippo - 20
Zebra - 20
Hawk - 20
Eagle - 20
Falcon - 22
Owl - 24 +
Parrot - 20
Toucan - 10
Alligator - 20
Crocodile - 22
Lizards - 32
Sharks - 12 -

I was playing the "Hurt and Heal- Wild Animals" game. Weirdly, it didn't show up there, but it showed up here. o.0
 
#64

The one above thread. I was beaten by three people and the last one was actually the poster that number belonged to.
 
<em>{username}</em>

was doing a little editing somewhere
 
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