WRITTEN BY Quinlan Nightshade
For decades, each passing year. Each passing generation America has proudly paraded itself as the land of the free. A nation built on being a beacon of democracy, justice, and opportunity. The country where hard work and determination are supposed to lead to success. And freedom was supposed to be a birthright, not a privilege. But look around, does it feel like freedom? Does it feel like democracy? Or does it feel like we’re all just sleepwalking through the inevitable collapse of a system that was never built to protect us in the first place?
But if you step back and actually look at the state of this country, it really is a country that has been so broken that it enjoys wearing a mask that continues to welcome people and pretends to be a beacon that offers hope and freedom. Which has been gone for such a long time. American is really a nation so deep in denial that it refuses to admit it’s rotting from the inside?
We’ve become numb. Numb to corruption, numb to suffering, numb to the fact that our so-called leaders have turned this country into a corporate-run empire where the rich will always continue to get richer and the rest of us are just cogs in the machine pawns in their game where we continue to lose and they continue to win. Other countries protest, rise up, and demand change. But in America? We accept the abuse. We retreat into distractions keeping us blinded from the truth. We keep our heads down, and pretend that everything will eventually fix itself. We distract ourselves with entertainment. We laugh at the absurdity while ignoring that the walls are closing in. News flash: they won’t. And the longer we stay asleep, the worse it’s going to get.
America: A nation asleep while everything burns
Look at where we are. Just a decade ago, things were bad. Now? They’re accelerating towards something even worse. The country is crumbling, and yet, people are too exhausted, too overwhelmed, or too desensitized to fight back. And that’s exactly how those in power want it.
*The working class is struggling harder than ever. wages have stagnated, cost of living has skyrocketed, and yet we’re told to “work harder” as if capitalism isn’t bleeding us dry. Corporations enjoy squeezing employees for everything they can while still claiming they can’t afford raises. The American dream is a scam designed to keep people chasing a false promise of success while they drown in bills and debt.
*Corporate greed dictates our laws.- Billionaires pay less in taxes than the average person who has to pay even more. Corporations exploit loopholes, offshore their money, and buy politicians to keep the system rigged in their favor. And corporations write policies that benefit themselves. while crushing the people they exploit. The people that are writing these policies aren’t looking out for the public. They are protecting the pockets of the wealthy.
*The government silences dissent.- Whistleblowers who expose corruption are punished. While criminals in the office walk free. Protesters are labeled as threats. Protesters for justice are met with police brutality. Meanwhile, actual criminals? Those in power continue their destruction unchecked. All the while propaganda tells us that we’re the problem for wanting fairness.
*The illusions of democracy is fading completely.- We don’t choose leaders. Corporate donors and backroom deals do. Voters suppression tactics run rampant, and major political parties answer to the same puppet masters. And we’re given the illusion of choice between corrupt politicians who all serve the same masters- big business, wall street and the elite.
*Fascism is creeping in.- surveillance is increasing. Censorship is growing, laws are being manipulated to control people rather than protecting them. Minority communities are demonized, education is being rewritten to erase inconvenient truths, and police forces are being militarized to prepare for unrest. police militarization, attacks on marginalized groups, and the consolidation of power under corporations. Sounds familiar? This isn’t democracy. It’s the slow, deliberate slide into authoritarianism. Because history has shown us where this leads.
And yet, the majority of Americans continue to go about their daily lives, stuck in survival mode, exhausted from working multiple jobs just to stay afloat, too drained to fight back. Because that’s exactly how the system is designed. To break down people until they no longer have the energy to resist.
Land of the free or corporate prison?
Let’s stop pretending and just be honest here, let’s stop pretending that America is a free country. Because in all honesty America is not a free country. It loves to give people false hope and narrative that it is. In all reality, It’s a corporation, run by a dystopian era of greed. Where freedom only exists if you can afford it. Everything here cost something? Your health, your sanity, and unfortunately your dignity.
*Healthcare?- You have to pay to survive. Get sick? Hope you can afford thousands of dollars in medical bills, or just die quietly.
*Higher education?- A debt trap that keeps people enslaved to loans. An endless debt to enslave people in loans for decades and more.
*Housing?- A rigged system controlled by investment firms and landlords jacking up rent prices. While homelessness skyrockets.
*wages?- Designed to keep people just above drowning but never able to escape.
Yet, we’re told that we’re the problem. We just need to work harder, be more responsible and stop complaining. Yet, we continue to accept it. We complain, but we don’t actually act upon it. We vent online, but we don’t organize. And the system counts on that. The people in power know that as long as we are numb, as long as we feel powerless, nothing will change. While Billionaires hoard obscene amounts of wealth and corporations rake in records profits while paying workers crumbs.
America is not a free country. It’s a corporate- run dystopia where your worth is measured by how much you can produce before you break.
America: The Global laughing stock
It’s no secret that other countries look at America and don’t just shake their heads, they laugh. Not because they hate us, but because they see what we refuse to do, what we truly refuse to do. The rest of the world sees a country that:
*Calls itself a democracy but actively suppresses votes
*Preaches freedom while stripping away rights
*Claims to be global leader while its owns citizens struggles to afford basic necessities
*Boasts about its military while ignoring the homelessness crisis
We claim to be the best country in the world, yet our own citizens can’t afford healthcare, rent, or a decent education. Meanwhile, we pour billions into endless wars and military spending while Americans ration insulin and skip meals. Other countries have universal healthcare, free education, and actual workers’ rights. But america? America would rather die before giving its people the bare minimum.
And now, our government has turned into a circus. A clown and a jester fighting for control while the people suffer. This is the state of America: a country run by out of touch elites, powered by corporate greed, and held together by the illusion of freedom.
We are standing at a crossroads. The cracks in the system are getting wider, and sooner or later, something has to give. The question is will people wake up in time to fight back, or will we sit in silence as the country crumbles into full-blown fascism?
We’ve seen it before in history. Societies that ignored the warning signs, that allowed corruption to fester, that gave up their power because they thought someone else would fix it. And what happened to them? They fell.
It’s easy to feel hopeless, to think “this is just the way things are.” but history has shown that change only happens when people refuse to accept oppression. Change only happens when people refuse to accept and finally say enough. The system thrives on our exhaustion, on our belief that nothing can change. But history has proven over and over again that when enough people stand up, the system has to listen.
So, what will we do?
*Will we continue to be numb?
*Will we continue to accept less and less until we have nothing left?
*Or will we finally wake up?
The choice is ours.
America is on the brink of something either collapse or revolution. The people in power want you to believe that things will stay the same, that nothing can be done. But that’s a lie. The only thing that keeps the system running is the belief that we are powerless. But we are not.
If history has taught us anything, it’s that change only happens when people demand it. The question is will we keep ignoring reality? Or will we finally take back the country we were promised?
Because if we don’t act soon, there won’t be anything left to save.
Beautiful Enigmas 