What does it mean to be an American?

  What does it mean to be an American?. I have no idea...and suspect this to be a loaded question. I can guess that it means to be a free person, living in a democratic society, with inalienable Rights....but something tells me it is more than that.
  The Founding Fathers formed a Nation governed "By the People, For the People "but these people, the first Americans, are not who we are today.These Men and Women were extraordinary,their temperament was forged in the personal sacrifices of oppression,tyranny and war...and through these sacrifices they became visionary.They wanted to govern themselves,to represent themselves and to be accountable to their peers.They would not be governed by a King,represented by a King or be accountable to a King.
  The first Americans realized that EVERY Man has certain God given Rights.These rights are inherent,like the color of your eyes,the color of your hair....the color of your skin.(it took a civil war to work this out)No King,No man,no government,No legislation can ever take these rights away.They are inalienable and have been paid for by the blood of our Families.
  When these "traitors"formed our government,they bound this new representative body to the princible of God given Rights of every American and declared independence from tyranny.To defend these ideologies,this first Congress,through the clear vision of experience,depth of charactor and free thought processes,included a clause in this declaration:..... "We hold these truths to be self evident,that all men are created equal,that they are endowed with certain inalienable Rights,that among these are Life,Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness.That to secure these Rights,governments are instituted among men,deriving their JUST powers from the CONSENT of the governed-that when any form of government becomes destructive to these ends,it is the Right of the people to alter or to abolish it and to institute a new government." 
   America became a great nation because our government and it's citizens enacted and followed Fair and Just Laws....But sometime in the past two centuries,our government has lost it's sight,lost its character.Greed has filled that void in the heart of our Nation.Industry backed initiatives to grab power,based no longer on the Rights or the consent of the governed but on the protection of corporations and industry.These entities have taken over our government, our media, our televisions by using money,fear and indoctrination to install their agendas,install their congressmen,their senators,their federal judges........Their Presidents.As a result,there has been a shift in the relationship between the government and the citizenry.Abuse of power,non-transperancy,erosion of liberties,freedoms and rights,institution of unjust laws based on exclusive religious dogma,racism, and moral "perception" have evaporated the vaneer of trust between us.
  Now,a citizen who witnesses and exposes FELONIOUS,unconstitutional behavior in a branch of government is called a "Traitor" by government (industry backed) cronies.Instead of being hailed as a hero,a promoter of what is RIGHT and JUST....a defender of our Constitution, the whistleblower is accused of treason!
  So back to the question,"What does it REALLY mean to be an American?"...I am afraid we will only find out AFTER that underlined clause in our Declaration has been instituted....God Bless Us All..