Every year when I watch the president’s State of the Union Address, I see only half the room stand up at a time, and hear the president only value their party’s platform ideals, or just the pure political tension in the room. 

Frankly, its exhausting to see presidents, both Democrat and Republican, say that our union is strong when it clearly is not. I would prefer that they tell the truth. I assume they do not say this because they would look bad belittling America, and more importantly to them, belittling their own party. 

However, it is the difficult conversations that produce change, and in order for our country to change, our politics must do the same. 

The American spirit has fizzled out in recent decades, and that is no lie or opinion. After WWII, the U.S. was top in ranking regard to education, science and technology, the thriving middle-class, fair working environments and compensation, and the best infrastructure the world had ever seen. 

Today, there is no national unity, no hard conversations, American thought is in a crisis, and very few of our politicians comprehend this. 

Our politics are the lowest of low, and this can be seen if you turn on any news station, whether it be biased or not. Our leaders claim that they know what is best for the people since they were, after all, elected by the people. 

They, the Democrats and Republicans, either naively forget to realize or just disregard the problems that face our nation and fail to coalesce in effort to save our future for every common American - not just the red or the blue ones alone. 

Special interests, big money and corporate control of our leaders is something the overwhelming majority of Americans cannot afford to utilize.  

While the common American may have these hard conversations, again, almost all of our politicians disregard them if it means they can gain another reelection. Our struggling union is faltering, fading and failing. 

Our country is made up of people from all walks of life, and these walks of life, although represented by the most diverse House of Representatives, can do better. Progress does not just take a party, it takes a country; our leaders need to realize this. 

So, when you tout how America is the best, think again. Yes, we have made great strides but these do not matter when not all Americans can experience them. Institutional inequality prevents freedom and financial inequality prevents a good middle class. 

A government subservient to a military industrial complex and a political party machine is no people’s government. The state of our union has not been strong for a long time. Maybe more of our leaders can comprehend this so that real united national progress can prevail again.

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