Happy Birthday, America

[poliphilo]

Sometimes it can be comforting to look back. 

There was Senator Joe McCarthy- that was a shameful period of American history- with the US polity mirroring that of Stalin's Russia in staging show trials of intellectuals- but McCarthy got run out of town eventually.

And then there was Vietnam. 

And Watergate.

There's nothing the Bush administration has done- waging disastrous imperial wars,  corrupting the political life of the Republic- that hasn't been done before- and worse. America has these massive mood swings- and when she turns nasty the rest of the world cowers- but she always pulls herself right in the end.

I'm not an American, I'm not even particularly Americanophile, but I believe as a sober matter of fact that the USA is the single best political idea we (meaning human beings) have ever had. A Republic based on the values of the Enlightenment- how cool is that!

Of course America has done horrible things- which nation hasn't?- but she remains- because of the vision of her founding fathers-  "the last best hope of earth". 

That's a quote from Abraham Lincoln- the nearest the dirty profession of politics has ever come to producing a saint.

So, happy birthday, America,

You'll get over these recent set-backs-

Of course you will.

Comments

[michaleen.livejournal.com]

Thanks, Tony.

As for political saints, I feel that any president that swears to "preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States" and, to the best of their ability, actually does so is in some measure a saint.

[algabal.livejournal.com]

I've been surprised to learn, given the political atmosphere of the 21st century, how many Europeans still feel this way. I personally felt had similar thoughts about Britain for a long time. I had this very romanticized vision of it as the seat of Western civilization.

But I think now that countries are just groups of people, with their own biases, language and culture. They aren't ideas. If a country is just an idea, it's worthless. It's the meat that counts, not the moral.

Well...

[jubal51394.livejournal.com]

It's only 7AM here in the old U.S. of A... and I was just beginning to contemplate what I would say today. One needs to say something on a day like this one but I'm a bit of a rebel and never a "flag waver", perish the thought.

And you have just said exactly what I would have said after several hours of deliberation... though probably not quite as well.

So... thank you dear Tony for making my day. I will now shamelessly reprint every single word in my own journal... crediting my wise old friend in the UK, of course. Thank you so much!

[jenny_evergreen]

I hope it does. It's such a messy place, this country, very scrabbling and squabbling and confused and the hugeness makes that dangerous for everyone, so everyone, inside and out, ends up trying to keep the mad giant standing and hoping no one else gets squished if it falls.
There's a reason children are small, I think, but nothing to do now but try to manage somehow...

[halfmoon-mollie.livejournal.com]

There was a period of time a few years ago that I was in Canada on vacation. Canadians and Americans look much the same, and I got to eavesdrop on some conversations about 'us' that I found downright embarrassing. But when I listened closely, they weren't really about my country, they were about That Man in the White House that I did NOT elect.

Thank you, Tony, for these nice words. I am maybe not the most patriotic of people, I think a lot of things are wrong with this country but you know, I'm still a citizen. And I'm glad to know that there are still people like you who can say this kind of thing so well.

P.S. I'm going to link to this.

[pondhopper.livejournal.com]

Thank you, Tony. Even though I'm an expat with a lot of European ideas and attitudes, I still feel closely linked to my birth country in many ways. I appreciate your words fully and indeed, hope they're prophetic.

[mummm.livejournal.com]

Thank you Tony! No one could have said that better than you.

[bodhibird.livejournal.com]

Thank you, my dear sir, for this very cheering and comforting post. There've been times when I've been tempted to write your government and ask to be taken back as a colony, and the last eight years have been pretty bad. When you see a young Scotsman from Edinburgh say on YouTube that he'd like to see Obama in the White House, you know it's bad. Thank you--it's good to know that people abroad care about us.

[internet-sampo.livejournal.com]

Thank you.

[cataptromancer.livejournal.com]

Thank you, sir.

[wlotus.livejournal.com]

Thank you. I sure hope so.

[sculptruth.livejournal.com]

Thank you for your kindness. I wish it were/could be true. I wish there were medication for a bi-polar government to even the ebbs and flows...

[pecosbill.livejournal.com]

Thank you. Well said.

[solar-diablo.livejournal.com]

Thanks for offering a positive assessment of my country. It's rare anymore.

[daisytells.livejournal.com]

Once again your wisdom and insights are right on. Thank you for the "Happy Birthday" wishes. I AM celebrating today, albeit in a state of confusion. Our Democrat candidate is doing so many about-faces on his platform that I cannot help but wonder if there will indeed be any difference between him and the Republican.
And -- if things keep trending the way they are, I wonder if we are in for "four more years".