Last Tuesday, millions watched with excitement, and millions watched with trepidation as Donald Trump secured enough Electoral College votes to become president-elect of the United States.

Both major parties nominated what are perhaps the worst possible candidates to see, mock and tear apart. We the people endured 18 months of prolonged agony, and this is the election we got? This? Neither major choice was anything close to ideal. One was a product of corrupt government and the other a product of corrupt culture.

Neither candidate cared about you, your family or your community prior to the election, and neither cares what you think or want now that it’s over. Moreover, neither lives in the same realm of America as you and I. Clinton and Trump both have far too much money and power than they know what to do with, but you and I will still have to live, work and attend school in our United States of America. We can’t just hop on a private plane and fly away from our family’s and community’s problems. We make this country what it is, not the president. Trump won’t do anything. He won’t stop crime in your neighborhood or stop someone from stealing your identity. He won’t stop school or police shootings. He won’t fix anything, but we can. You and I. Americans with sound morals, values and ethics who choose to stand together will make this country whatever it is, not the president.

Whether you’re satisfied with the election or not, don’t allow your idle Facebook rants and fiery Tweets to be your only contribution to this situation. If you feel disenfranchised, do something about it. Don’t wait another four years! If you want change, educate yourself, stand up and act on it. Call, email, write, do anything to communicate with your local representatives. How are they suppose to know how you feel if you don’t tell anyone but your internet friends? If they’re unaware of an issue, how are they supposed to address it? The United States is a democratic republic, a country that’s both a republic as well as a democracy; ultimate authority and power is derived from citizens and government itself is run through elected officials. Tell elected officials about your concerns; that’s how a democratic republic works — it’s up to you how efficiently it works.

This election was crazy and unprecedented, but instead of choosing the greater good, we picked our poison. And though one wing is left, and the other is right, the United States is the same bird. Each feather represents an ethnicity, a religion, a language, a lifestyle. Each feather represents an insight, an understanding, a likeness or a difference. History, heritage, rural, urban, men, women, children, etc. all play a major role in the dynamic of what it means to be an American. We can either stay where we are, on the ground, helpless, or we can pull together, fix both broken wings and soar.

Brie Walker

Ames, Iowa