Happy Thanksgiving, you all.

It's been a very difficult year in a series of difficult years.

We are a nation divided as opposed to a United States on this Thanksgiving Day.

The Light is flickering, but it is not yet out.  It's smaller... it's dimming... it's on the wane.

My faith in my Nation is shaken as we begin our exit from world dominance of liberty and into the footnote of history to which all great Nations eventually succumb.

It's a little after 2 a.m. as I sit in my office pondering these issues yet again.

We've shown ourselves to be a nation capable of horrific, generational stupidity and political self-interest in the choice of our leaders at every level.  We've shown an institutional ignorance of reality that has caused American blood to be spilled needlessly as pawns die under the guise of defending this country when those who lead it really don't give a crap about those bleeding and broken at their behest.

Corruption at all levels; obvious and reeking, runs rampant.  We assign rights to those breaking our laws by their mere presence as we become increasingly overwhelmed at the cost of that presence and the cost of so many unneeded, unnecessary bribaries called "social programs" as our government is bent on the destruction of this nation... and we all return to shadows and dust.

Our economy continues on in a shambles as millions suffer from the lack of leadership, direction, vision and planning so desperately needed as we continue to trade our freedom for the dependence on "stuff" stolen from those who actually earned it; going so far, for example, as calling the requirement to be an American citizen and have photo ID "racist" if needed to exercise the right to vote.

It is impossible to be optimistic under these circumstances as those in charge from both parties sink us further and further into unrecoverable debt and bankruptcy, yoking unborn generations to the slavery of the debt assigned to them now in ways I cannot even begin to explain to my children, each now responsible for $200,000 in federal debt for things they don't even know about.

Someone, much smarter than I, once pointed out that the debt is not just the president's fault, but also that of the Congress of the United States.  We have a debt.  They are responsible for it, not just the president.

The end.

In reality, if Congress didn't want a debt, their wouldn't be one.  And now we still have democrats running the show who want us to sprint off the fiscal cliff while the Republicans want us to hop off that same cliff at a somewhat slower, more sedate pace.

Locally; the reeking, criminal corruption of the CRC continues unabated as those who should be looking out for us (You listening, Jaime?) instead look out for the special interests who own them at our expense.  Double digit unemployment in the United States runs rampant.  Foreclosures continue at an astounding pace.  Millions are miles under water in their homes.

And no one does a damned thing about it.

No, optimism is a rare commodity, reserved for those no longer real times when there is even a glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel that isn't attached to the hurtling train of our own destruction.

The pain of loss and anger at perceived betrayal runs rampant at all levels as well... even in my own extended family as my brother-in-law was destroyed at the polls and I vociferously opposed his re-election.... and then the loss of his mother...

I am blessed, however, that my friends, colleagues and clients remain steadfast in their support during these trying economic and professional times.  I am blessed with a wife who really does complete me, and kids that are all anyone could reasonably even dream of in times such as these.

They sustain me.  They make me whole.  I am nothing without them all.

Nations come and go, but the love of family and friends echos through eternity.

And for that, I give thanks every day of my life.  Even when the gray clouds loom, and the rain falls, and the leaves turn.

We are fortunate in so many ways, and I wish the same for you all on this day of celebration and somber introspection. God Bless us all.