Wait Until We Throw These Rascals Out

October 29, 2010
by Chip Wood



I read a very depressing statistic last week. In a nationwide poll, some 63 percent of adult Americans said they do not think they will be able to maintain their present standard of living much longer, much less improve it.

This made me very sad — and a little bit angry, too. Sad, because for 200 years, this country held out the promise of a better life to everyone who was willing to work for it. We could argue for hours about what America means to each of us. But for all of my life, until now, it meant the opportunity to build a better life — and to expect that your children would achieve even more than you have.

My grandparents arrived here as penniless immigrants. They never took a dime of charity. They would have slit their wrists before accepting welfare. As new arrivals from Ireland in the early 20th century, they saw “Irish Need Not Applyâ€