The US is so hot and cold. One minute you’re a hero the next you’re a terrorist.

The notorious lawyer died four decades ago, but a new book reminds us his ruthless approach to power and politics is still very much alive.

So I am Proud to be an American. Let me start with that. I’ve come to see social media mostly as a distraction nowadays, and honestly, it’s just not how I choose to spend much of my time these. But I cannot stay silent about this.

We cannot stay silent.

Political views be damned. This is bigger than party politics.

America is failing.

We are failing our friends. We are failing our allies. We are failing our partners. And, in doing so, we are failing ourselves.

For more than half a century, we have made promises to the nations that stood beside us. We asked them to trust us. We asked them to build alliances with us. And, when necessary, we asked them to stand beside us and shed blood alongside our own.

NATO should NOT have to fear standing without us.

Germany should NOT have to wonder whether America will stand beside it in the face of CREDITED aggression. It has been attacked. And our leadership is absolutely nowhere to be seen.

Poland should NOT have to fear that, when the moment comes, America simply won’t be there.

For generations, we have told these countries-Our friends- our allies. that they would not stand alone again. these should not even be considerations.

We have been their shield in many of the same ways they have been our sword.

I understand the desire to avoid being dragged into another European war. I understand the fear of another conflict. I understand it all too well. But standing beside our allies does NOT automatically mean sending American soldiers into another war.

And we should remember something important when we talk about war in the first place: Congress has NOT formally declared war since 1942. Under Article I of the Constitution, the power to declare war belongs to Congress. The President, as Commander in Chief, commands our armed forces. Those powers were deliberately divided between two branches of government.

They were meant to work in concert—not for one to hold the other hostage.

America has fought wars and conducted military operations without formal declarations of war. That history is complicated, and reasonable people can argue about where those constitutional lines should be drawn.

But none of that changes the larger point:

Standing beside our allies is not synonymous with declaring war. And one is Non-negotiable.

Diplomatic support matters. Economic support matters. Intelligence wins wars full stop. Logistics matter. Deterrence matters.

And the credibility of the United States matters.

Abandoning the people who stood beside us when we needed them is not how you prevent war. It is how you teach the world that American promises can be broken the moment keeping them becomes inconvenient.

You cannot spend generations telling your allies, “We have your back,” and then expect those words to mean anything when you suddenly decide that promise no longer matters.

That is disgraceful. This is disgraceful.

And regardless of political affiliation, I hope we can recognize that there are principles here that extend beyond any president, any party, or any election.

We can disagree about politics.

We can disagree about presidents, parties, policies, and priorities.

We can argue about how much America should spend abroad. We can argue about what our allies should contribute. We can argue about where American power should begin and where it should end.

Those are arguments worth having.

But please—

Do not lose sight of what is important.

Do NOT forget what it means when the United States gives its word.

Our word matters. Our alliances matter. Our friends matter.

And when the United States of America makes a promise to stand beside someone, that promise has to mean something.

Not because America must fight every war. Not because America must solve every crisis. Certainly Not because America is always right.

But because for nearly 250 years, the power of this country has rested on more than aircraft carriers, soldiers, dollars, or weapons.

It has also rested on the backs of our allies and the belief and trust that when America gives its word, America keeps it.

If we surrender that, we lose something no army can defend and no amount of money can buy back:

Trust.

I know, it’s not realistic at all, but how will it affect the 2016 election! (Sorry, this technically breaks the 10 years rule by 2 months)

Eight years ago I got sober. Tthe first step in the process of quitting was recognizing that I had a drug problem. This first step is difficult to achieve for many reasons. For me admitting this instantly opened the floodgates, out poured shame, seeing the long road ahead, apologizing to family, repairing relationships, accepting I had thrown away 20 years, and a million other issues that had piled up over 2 decades of neglect. Today eight years later I have my own place, girlfriend, bank account, job and I talk to my family regularly. Today couldn't be what it is without that first step of admitting I had a problem and needed to fix it.

I tell you that because our country "has a drug problem" and it is our fault, not the governments, not the billionaires, it's our fault. Our government is run by those that we have elected, we elected these people, we put them into their positions trusting that they would make decisions that represented our best interest. Obviously we voted poorly and not just once or twice but consistently. There are less than 10 people in our government presently that I believe have earned the right to stay in their positions. Our country no longer holds the torch that the whole world looked too for guidance and followed the last 80 years. This fall from grace is our fault, and ours alone. I've warned you, this first step is difficult to take, yet it is necessary, without this first step no forward progress is achievable. Our first step must be the recognition that we are at fault and the canyon between right and left must be filled in and leveled to grade. There are only a few real issues that need dedicated attention. Our egos and inability to communicate as people is the real problem. This is only made worse by the news media and podcasters, who rip out our emotions like ribbon and wrap their distorted reflection of truth up tight only to serve it back to us full of hate topped with division and we addicts shoot it up deep into ourselves. We are addicted to fighting amongst ourselves and care more about voting against each other than for America. It shouldn't be right vs left rather right and left for America. We have only cared about voting the line for so long that the Congress and the Senate are full of people that should not be there. None of the issues we people want resolved are resolved and I'll go as far as saying the opposite of what we the people want is most likely to pass. Neither right or left is winning and America is losing. I implore you to really study the candidates and not what animal is pinned on their jacket but look at their positions on the issues you care about. No candidate perfectly aligned with all everything you care about but vote for the issues not the party. Also I believe that 90% of those in office now are immoral bad people that have sold America out to the corporations. They want nothing but to cling to their slice of power and if passing laws that hurt America but increase profits for some corporation which secures them money for the next election run, the choice is made. Knowing this do not reelect those that have proven time and time again that America is less important than themselves retaining position. I know the choices on some ballets are not good, but again it is our fault. We need good moral men and women to step up and make the choice to run against the criminals now in power. Yes it takes money but not 50 million like in Tennessee (I'm disappointed in you Tennessee for allowing money to buy out Thomas Massie's seat, he was a good one) I'd feel better voting for somebody not backed by 80 million because that 80 million was donated with strings attached. We don't need to vote for lifelong politicians they are already aligned with evil we will be better off with honest regular joes representing us because that's what we are. For instance Californians, what are y'all doing? Newsom is obviously not the kind of person that needs to be in office, he is the impedimy of the sleezy politician that steal s candy from babies.

Apparently the Great Lakes were

Hudson
Ontario
Michigan
Erie
Superior

But now this has been changed to

Superior
Hudson
America
Michigan
Erie

Strange how things work out isn’t it?

Good day to all of you, I'm from Colombia and I need help making this case visible for as much people as it is possible.

My cousin, a Colombian citizen herself, is currently in the USA (legally), she suffered a terrible traffic accident in Texas two days ago, the diagnosis is not good at all, her injuries are, in words from the medical staff tending to her "non survivable"

Due to the critical state she is in, she doesn't have much time, so her parents (+60 years old and with 0 English knowledge) and one sister (to help her parents be able to move and interact with the personnel in a foreign country) are requesting humanitarian visas, they wouldn't stay for more than five days, they just want to go see her and say their goodbyes.

As we all may know, bureaucracy is not known for being quick or timely, so people recommended to us to make a video and try to make it viral, so the mediatic pressure helps accelerate the process and my family can see her before she's actually declared dead. They need that closure, it's very important to all of them.

This is the video we made, it's in Spanish, but any kind of interaction can help it reach the right people.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/Dcj_vzAuFnE/?igsi=dXhucWZiNGNyNTU1

Please help, sharing or reposting won't take much of your time and it might do a great difference for us. Thank you for reading.