Once a beacon of freedom, Lady Liberty now stands exposed, vulnerable. America the beautiful is under siege, disrobed, and gagged by the very promise of the American Dream.  Lady Liberty is a reflection of the America we live in today. Where the iconic robed woman once held a tablet of law, she now holds a symbol of poverty. Where she once held a beacon of hope, she now holds a tool of war. 

How do we revive America’s liberty from the suffocation of war, pain and inequality?

In The Ultimate Sacrifice a savior has been crucified — a symbol of truth destroyed by the almighty dollar bill. In the interplay of government and religious power, truth and justice get sacrificed to support greed, ignorance, violence, and hate. The Ultimate Sacrifice asks us to choose between sacrifice and salvation, and balance Church and State. This is the Divided State of our soul in America.

How do we recapture our faith in American values, and forsake our fanatical lust for money and power?

One side advocates the use of nuclear power and the expansion of oil drilling. The other for the construction of windmills and solar panels. And yet, both solutions are not enough – waning resources are insufficient to support America’s continued consumption, and the economy is suppressed by Wall Street, continuing wars, and our unsustainable growth. The same gas that fuels American productivity forms the noose that may one day hang us. 

Can America pledge allegiance to finding sustainable solutions?

On every dollar bill, the Great Seal of the United States seals our fate with Annuit Coeptis, Latin for “He approves of the undertakings.” Since the Citizens United decision, centers of power – not the individual – approve of the undertakings of American politicians over the heads of working citizens. Atlas-like Americans have been rendered silent by this influence in a society intended to be of the people, by the people, for the people.

How do we restore the voice of the people as the political authority in the United States?

For a nation built on the idea that all men are created equal, prejudice divides us at the polls and on the streets. Gone are the days of Lincoln’s log cabins and the fifty years since we sent man into space, and yet our youth are still targeted by “The Man” and his manmade means of oppression. The Pursuit of Happiness remains in fierce competition with the deadly forces of injustice, prejudice, and inequality.

How can all Americans be truly endowed with the inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness?

In spite of our division, the ideal of The United State remains at the center of the American fabric. The Left and Right remind us of the difficulties our nation faces: drug wars, reckless ownership of guns, the high cost of college tuition, and the power of corporate interests, among others. Nevertheless, Lady Liberty’s promise of opportunity beckons us – public, private, and the people — to work in harmony as one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. 

Will we plot the right course to bring America from divided to united?