European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - January 9, 1992, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Thursday january 9, 1992 the stars and stripes a Page 13 commentary David h. Hackworth get involved to put our country Back on track this past year tens of thousands of new veterans take their place in ceremonies beside those of Concord new Orleans Shiloh the Marne Normandy the Cho sin Reservoir Quyhoa and a score of other military actions. I was in the Gulf reporting for Newsweek and i proudly watched americans Young men and women do their stuff like old pros. They were dedicated selfless and courageous. They made me feel reassured about being an american because they represented everything Noble and Fine about our country. Yet i like Many veterans today wonder whether our country is better off now than it was at that memorable time 40 years ago when triumphant in the last worldwide shooting War we confidently engaged in a worldwide political War. Today the cynical among us ask a what did we fight for we won the cold War and lost our nation a in 1950, America was on top of the world. We led in everything a from Quality made in Usa products to Strong values that enriched our families schools and houses of worship. Our government business religious and educational leaders were straight and took responsibility for their actions. Our Banks and dollars were Strong. Our streets were clean and Safe. Our children could read and write and were As Bright As new Moons full of innovations and ideas. All one had to do was Roll up his sleeves and work hard. The future was never header. Today our governments Are rocked with scandal from the White House to City Halls. No one is responsible. The a amp a and Bocci megabucks White Collar holdups Keating five affairs and deficit disasters blow across the land like autumn leaves to be raked up by the average american whose Standard of living Falls As his taxes Rise. Teen agers shoot it out in the streets with automatic rifles. Condoms have replaced prayer in our schools and drugs have replaced Hope in our youth. The education system is bankrupt and produces new age morons who Are High tech illiterates. Many of our children can to write spell or add. Our Economy still the richest in the world despite All the bungling sputters like a rusted out car on the crumbling shoulder of a fast Lane. Americans wealth and future have been plundered with the reckless arrogance of a two bit dictator. Greed rules the land. Our Banks Are melting Down and the Rich buy new tax shelters the Way they buy lawmakers. Members of Congress ask not what they can do for their country but what they can do for themselves through pics Perks and rip offs. The lobbyist Stoke the politicians fire with Money and these chosen representatives of the people turn their Heads away from the nations needs and instead focus on their own urgent business the next election prestige Power and me me me. Oliver North Richard Secord and John Poindexter graduates of our military academies shred the Constitution they swore to defend and become heroes to the loony tuners. The Pentagon deceives our citizens with chants of More bombs bombers and bullets so we wont be gobbled up by some Boogeyman dreamed up by the Cia. Defense contractors have made Ike so military Industrial Complex come True. They have stolen our National treasure stewed our Industrial base and wasted much of our nations Talent building bombs and tanks instead of building America. Our congressional watchdogs have jumped into bed with these Crooks and Are Licking their faces for re election dollars instead of sending them to jail. Globetrotter George Bush sends our armed forces to Stop aggression in the Gulf but wont take action to Stop aggression in americans streets. In the Gulf War which made As Little military sense As the invasion of Panama there were few winners. One big loser was americans Freedom of the press. Our reporters were denied free Access to our warriors so they  report what they saw and were forced instead to regurgitate what the Pentagon fed them leaving the Public to believe that it was a Good War bloodless laser clean and Antiseptic. The Gulf War was about Oil but two primary Consumers failed to Send troops. While we kept the Oil pumping into Japan and Germany they were continuing to bust our crops in the Industrial Arena. While we 1992 race defend their lands they sandbag on defense spending and put their Money into research and development to Zap us in the technology race. When John Sununu flies to the dentist and collects Stamps in his flashy Limo the taxpayer picks us the Tab. A Yuppie political operator at 31, leaves the White House inner Circle to Cash in As the Washington hit Man for an Arab Oil sheikh. While Jim Bank scr and Jimmy Swaggart talk god and redemption they steal and sleaze and ask for understanding with the same repentance and regret As Ted Kennedy and Alan Simpson. Michael Milken is viewed by Many As a big Wall Street Robin Hood instead of a cheap Hood who stole big. Arnold Schwarzenegger a role Model of violence drives a $130,000 army humvee so Liz Taylor an icon of illusion and instant gratification wants one too. In their desert storm toys they will drive on past the homeless hungry and dispossessed the walking wounded of every big City Street in America. The Cost of the humvee would care for Many of the a wretched refused from our Kinder gentler America. Meanwhile our veterans hospitals Are filled with human wreckage eagerly dispatched to our wars but disdained upon their return. A Navy officer recently wrote me a something has happened to our country. It seems that those who lie cheat and steal Are rewarded and those that do not have More difficulties than they can  Well Young Ensign you re dead right. People done to feel like they have the capacity to turn things around anymore and their lives Are going Down the tubes. The working stiffs have been Down so Long they have forgotten How to look up. Many just shrug when they Are reminded that one of every seven americans lives below the poverty line and that decent medical care can be obtained Only by Gold card holders. We have our own third world nation right Here in the . The citizens know that the system does no to Benefit the people it benefits the special interest groups. As a result Many americans have forgotten that they have a rightful place in the running of our government. Yet there is a change blowing in the wind. I feel it wherever i travel. Revolutionary dissatisfaction is cutting across America like a cold wind. The people Are fed up with hearing they Are in the promised land when they know they Are smack in the Middle of the grapes of Wrath. They want leadership that will Lead by example not by poll results sound bites and warm and fuzzy Points of Light. They arc telling us on the streets to get rid of the bums in government who have corrupted America. It is not too late to get America Back on track. It is time to get involved time to Wake up. All we have to do is get cracking sound off and once again stand tall and be responsible for the Security of this great Republic. Editor s note the Waltor is a Rotl Rod army colonel who won eight purple hearts in Korea and Vittman. He is a contributing editor Tor nows Wook. Marilyn Geewax America gaining too Many phantom holidays productivity in this country is lagging because for Many years we have failed to invest enough Money in new equipment and worker training. But something else is sapping productivity we re losing too Many workdays. With each passing year we seem to add new phantom holidays to the work Calendar. How Many people still consider working the Day after thanksgiving in the waning weeks of 1991, with Christmas and new years Day falling on wednesdays millions of americans turned one Day events into two week parties. For 1991 is last 10 working Days offices and factories were half empty. Freeways were free flowing during Rush hour. I first noticed the trend toward Holiday shutdowns several years ago when the owner of a printing shop told me about his problems with thanksgiving. For years he had assumed the Fri Day after thanksgiving was a workday. But increasingly he was finding that trying to do business that Day was silly a so Many of his customers were shut Down it was hardly Worth turning on the lights. As a Small businessman he was operating on a very thin profit margin. Having to pay an extra Day of vacation to employees As Well As losing a Day of revenues was a significant problem. The phantom Holiday of the Day after thanksgiving took a very real chunk out of his profits. Imagine the Cost of that problem multiplied across the country at big companies and Small. Productivity has to be suffering As Freebie Days off proliferate. I got stung myself Over the holidays. I shipped an important package dec. 23, expecting it would be delivered in three Days. Understandably United parcel service was closed on Christmas but i was shocked to find it was dark on dec. 24 As Well. And on dec. 31 and Jan. 1. So a package sent dec. 23 did not arrive until Jan. 2 a a 10-Day voyage that caused me to miss a deadline. This Cavalier attitude about staying open for business is filtering Down to our children. I often am amazed at How Many youngsters i see shopping on school Days. When Atlanta held a Parade for its baseball braves tens of thousands of students skipped school to come downtown most with their parents permission. The ease with which we shut Down schools and businesses does represent a breakdown in self discipline. But to be fair it also reflects societal changes. For example the Holiday shutdown largely stems from a fundamental shift in american life most women now work outside of the Home. So when schools close for Christmas no one is Home to watch the children. Rather than try to cobble together some baby sitting system Many parents use their vacation time during the holidays. But with so Many people on vacation even those who do come to work feel less motivated. The Low productivity causes Many business owners to give in to the mood and just close up. Another reason for missed workdays is Job mobility. Many of us have followed career paths that have taken us far from our families a so we look for ways to slip Back Home without using up official vacation time. I too try to string together Long weekends so i can go to visit relatives. We All have very Good excuses for Why we skip work or shut Down our businesses for phantom holidays. But the next time we Start blaming the japanese for americans economic woes remember those people Are at their desks working. C Cox news service