I hate admitting that I grew up in Muncie, Indiana. It's a small town (around 67,430, accorinding to the year 2000 census), which is placed around the White River in East Central Indiana. According to WordIQ.com:
"The populace of the city politically is dominantly Republican. The Republicans controlling the city are so conservative tjat the government frequently refuses to raise or even charge necessary taxes, leaving the government bankrupt and the infrastructure in complete disarray. A common joke amongst Muncie residents is the utter disrepair of the roadways serving the city.
As of September 29, 2004, there are absolutely no job opportunities in Muncie. Don't even try to look, because you will be disappointed. The economy in Muncie is considered by many local economists to be somewhere between awful and dreadful. The city is solely dependent upon the existence of Ball State University for survival, which the born-and-bred locals reject as an economic fact."
I don't think a description of Muncie is better than that. It's a dying place, and it's dying because of the lack of dynamics of it's political system. Muncie is what happens when a cooperative entity has a homogenous culture and belief system. I left primarily for this reason, but Muncie is not alone in their poor thinking.
I now live in Indianapolis, and I've noticed the spread of closed-mindedness has infected most areas of the State of Indiana and on many levels, across the entire nation as well. It exists in churches, schools, media organizations, and government. It is not unlike a cancer that has attached itself to almost every major vital organ of the whole system.
What do I mean by "closed-mindedness"?
Politics in the USA are becoming increasingly divisive in appearance. America only has two viable political parties: Republican and Democrat, and both of these parties are so similiar, that there is no real choice. Yet, many people subscribe to one of those two parties, not understanding that these parties exist only to facilitate their largest contributers: Large corporate entities, or the exceptionally rich.
When there is a lack of any major difference between political candidates, one is faced with the question, "what is the point in even showing up to vote?" America is rapidly becoming Muncie. Good jobs are moving overseas, the infrastructure of the nation is being neglected, and the intelligent citizens are disappearing.
So I have defined the problem, what's the solution?
Unfortunately, there isn't one. Unless there is some sort of renaissance in our thinking, we are all faced with a grim future.
