I am a proud American. I love my country.
And I hate what is happening inside my country.
In this two part series, I will first outline some fundamental problems we as a nation face today. Then in Part 2, I will outline remedies that I personally believe are desperately needed to put us back as rightful leaders of the 21st Century world. Y’all do with it what you will.
Problem 1: Both sides want to return us to the 1950s
We’re never going back to the homogenously cultured, unquestionably Christian, orderly and safe Leave It To Beaver paradise that so many Conservatives believe was the peak of When America Was Great.
If it was ever really that way; I have my doubts.
We’re also never going back to financially fair, universal union membership and equal rights for all workers’ paradise that so many Liberals believe is the utopia we should uncompromisingly hold forth as our vision.
If it was ever really that way; I have my doubts.
The 1950s really isn’t a great model for America:
- Cultural repression included forced racial segregation, “anti-miscegenation” laws, and books banned (Huckleberry Finn, Wizard of Oz, Ernest Hemingway) for no good reason.
- Private union retirement promises were all lies; look at how General Motors’ pension collapsed under its own weight, and how unions in general became a front for Jimmy Hoffa and the mafia
- The U.S. Government conducted morally dubious human experimentations, to say the least — dispersing chemical weapons on unsuspecting American populaces, injecting hepititis into children, entomological weapons tests, etc.
- Mental Health was largely managed by asylums, electric shock therapy, and frontal lobotomies
- Health standards included leaded gasoline, lard for breakfast, and doctors endorsing brands of cigarettes
Fortunately, since the 1950s, the world has changed culturally, ethically, and structurally. We have organic food, and interest in yoga & meditation. We have a much more stable and established economy. We have the internet now, with a huge variety of content, and not just centralized news / TV sources. We had the civil rights movement, Brown v Board of Education, and Obergefell v. Hodges. We’ve had a genuine Black President, elected to two terms, on the books. Everyone can pursue their passion, be it art or starting a business, for much less money and ramp-up time. Everyone can find a community around their interest, no matter how niche. We have smartphones, Bitcoin, a permanent upper middle class of tech workers whose compensation is based on merit, and Ivy League schools no longer using family history as a major factor in admissions.
Leaders need to acknowledge this is the 21st Century, not the mid-20th Century. They need to articulate a vision that will carry us into the future, and not try to recreate and glorify a past that never existed.
Problem 2: If America falls, it won’t be pretty
People on both the left and the right, talk about Secession when elections don’t go their way. Right-wing militias were planning drastic action, if Hillary Clinton won 2016. Left-wing activists are openly talking about secession, should Ron DeSantis win 2024.
The truth is, not every Republican believes in white supremacist, corporate exploitation of BIPOC people into permanent poverty. Not every Democrat believes in destructive, hedonistic, stealing without earning, anarchy. But try convincing a raging MAGA, or a foaming at the mouth SJW, that reasonable people exist on the other side.
What both sides fail to realize is if the United States of American splits into two or three countries, or if we break into open warfare vs each other, bad things will happen:
- We will no longer be the world’s largest economy: China will
- We will no longer be the world’s leading military power: Russia will
- We will no longer be the flag-bearer for Freedom: nobody will
“You won’t like what comes after America” — Leonard Cohen
If we break up, what will happen to the rest of the freedom-loving world? Do you think Canada will be an effective deterrent to Chinese dominance? Do you think Vladimir Putin will listen to and respect Jacinda Ardern? Do you think OPEC will have any reason not to jack up the price of oil to $200+ per barrel? Do you think the EU is going to suddenly become the leader on trans rights and inclusion? Do you think Australia is going to lead the charge on racial Equity?
America is imperfect, and we have serious disagreements in our house. is that reason to burn the house down?
There is no other country on Earth that is as progressive, nor has as stable and long-lasting Constitution outlining law and order, as the United States. So you want to destroy our nation, and think the rest of the world will welcome us into their enlightened arms, sympathizing with our pain because everybody knew it was the USA holding progress back?
The USA is the only home we have. We need to make it work.
Problem 3: People join Politics not to serve their country, but to serve themselves.
“Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country!” — President John F. Kennedy
The obvious bad example here is Donald J. Trump, but this goes much deeper than Trump.
Soon after Joe Biden was elected, I attended a conference in New York, featuring various Democratic leaders as keynote speakers and panelists. This wasn’t even a political conference; it was a tech conference. You know, Artificial Intelligence, Big Data, Blockchain.
But that didn’t stop the nonstop praises of the incoming Biden administration, and repetition of whatever Democratic talking points were popular on that day. I never saw so many white politicians exalt Black Lives Matter. A handful of these speakers, soon joined the Biden administration in plush political appointments.
The whole thing was nauseating. But these folks were chasing small time peanuts.
If you really want to make money, then look at the top-earning political commentators:
- Tucker Carlson, the highest paid television show host in the world, reported $35 Million for income in 2021.
- Rachel Maddow signed a contract extension for $30 Million per year, in August 2021.
- Rush Limbaugh made as much as $85 Million per year, as a radio political commentator.
It pays to be a bombthrower. So much so, that amateurs are practicing their bombthrowing skills on all platforms from Hot Air to Medium. These amateurs are as obsessed with hitting the big leagues, as high school basketball players are obsessed with making the NBA. With about the same success ratio.
The only ones who have any chance of making the political big leagues, are those who are louder, more obnoxious, and more controversial than existing top figures. Tomi Lahren comes to mind. While I’m sure she’s made a lot of money for herself, I cannot think of one positive contribution she has ever made to our dialogue.
Other notable grifters include Katie Porter, and Matt Gaetz. These toxic wastes of life are ominous signs that the spiritual cancer which plagues us is growing and multiplying. There are zero positives either of these leeches bring to the table.
Meanwhile, people who run for office with noble intentions, who actually have ideas and experience to improve things, are laughed at by the other side, while their own side takes them out.
Look at how Rep. Stephanie Murphy has been treated by her own party. Look at how Marianne Williamson was treated in 2020, again by her own party. Look at how Chris Christie, who tried becoming inclusive toward Democrats for his second Governor term, has been blackballed from any Republican position ever since. Look at how Michael Bloomberg, perhaps the best Mayor New York City ever had, has no support from either party.
What to do?
Part 2 of this series will focus on how to how to fix our division. How to live with each other. And how to stop this country from tearing itself apart in a permanent way.
