Separating the Americans From the America-Haters
America’s two-hundred-fiftieth birthday is an apt time to separate those who disdain this country from those who thank God for having been born here.
I notice that the major “faces” representing the corporate news machine have decided to use this magnificent anniversary as a time for “reflection” about all the different ways the country and its people have somehow let those “faces” down. Instead of considering what an amazing melting pot of people have contributed to America’s greatness, the “faces” lecture us about enduring racism that is supposedly identical to the slavery that existed before the Civil War.
Instead of appreciating how innovators and producers transformed the United States into the wealthiest nation that has ever existed, the “faces” talk about material inequality and the “virtues” of collective ownership. Instead of marveling at the supreme intellectual gifts of our Founding Fathers, the “faces” bemoan the absence of black, “trans” women at the Declaration’s signing.
It is odd that the people whose wealth and fame would be possible in no other country in the world find it so easy to ignore their historical debts. Were it not for the providential arrival of a George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Alexander Hamilton during the consequential decade of America’s birth, there would be no talking heads on CNN today.
Instead of generating paroxysms of rhetorical outrage over “racism,” “sexism,” or “transphobia,” America’s sesquicentennial is an opportune year for our most privileged “elites” to get down on their knees, thank their lucky stars, and pray. Although many no doubt bent a knee for George Floyd, few appear to be grateful for either their good fortunes or God’s continued blessing of this great nation.
What does it say about those people who spend all their time criticizing a nation that has done more to secure the blessings of human liberty than any other on Earth? Slavery was real. Jim Crow was real. So was Jefferson’s declaration of self-evident truths: “that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.”
White men once owned black slaves. Some six-hundred-fifty thousand white men — roughly 2% of America’s population — died fighting in the Civil War. Americans have fought and bled against each other and against the armies of oppressive governments around the world to advance the cause of human freedom.
No nation has sacrificed so much so that strangers might be free. Anybody alive today who fails to appreciate the service of those who stepped into the choking smoke and muddy rivers of blood for the cause of someone else’s liberty is too vain and petulant to be worthy of American soldiers’ mortal offerings.
If America’s “elites” spent as much time reading the Declaration of Independence as they do talking about “haves” and “have-nots,” “oppressors” and the “oppressed,” whites and blacks, they might realize that there is much fertile American ground to sow the seeds of patriotic love and grow what indubitably unites us. The Founders’ civic virtue and love of liberty gave this country strong foundations. When fierce winds collapse the shrubs of other nations, America stands like the strongest oak.
When will the university professors, journalists, and pundits realize that they are part of a dwindling social clique obsessed with race?
When American soldiers reach out to save a brother, they do not care what color of skin covers the hand reaching back. Americans fight and die for other Americans. Americans sacrifice lives with families so that other families are never told that their loved-ones were left behind. And the ones who do the sacrificing, fighting, and dying never stop to think about race. The call goes out that an American is in trouble, and Americans of every color — united by common heritage — volunteer to rescue Americans of every color.
Who could look at America’s greatness from beyond its borders and not marvel at the ideals for which America’s people fight and the feats its people have accomplished? Was this not the story of the poor immigrant journeying to America’s shores at the turn of the twentieth century? Is it not true of so many who wish to become American today? Why are the hearts of America’s “elites” so darkened with self-loathing that they remain incapable of feeling the historic greatness of the very land most of the rest of the world would love to call home?
It is vexing that the month of June has been colonized for so-called “LGBTQ pride.” We reside in a nation that should be proud of so much. Its political ideals, economic growth, technological achievements, cultural influence, and historic rise are unparalleled.
Its people — the descendants of explorers, settlers, frontiersmen, and adventurers — are courageous and brave. Its triumphs vastly outweigh its failures. It remains the most consequential country on Earth and the only one that can inspire foreign peoples from foreign lands to emulate its noble spirit and deeds.
Should one feel a strong heartbeat when “The Star-Spangled Banner” plays, that natural pride springs from the hard work and determination of all the American generations that came before us. That pride was hard-earned. It glitters in the sun today only because our American ancestors built the roads, bridges, dams, towns, and cities that have taken us from the Mississippi River to the dark side of the moon.
Deprived of America’s accomplishments, the “LGBTQ” crowd would have nowhere to crow. Their “pride” is insular and selfish. Their “rainbow flag” is small next to Old Glory. Their self-adulation and self-worship are vulgar when laid next to the selfless heroism and stoic sacrifice of all the Americans who have traded their lives so that this generation might be strong.
The “LGBTQ” preeners pay tribute to themselves, but Americans who deserve to be proud have paid tribute to their families, towns, and country.
It’s a good year to take stock of American greatness. It’s a good year to think about all the Americans who built, expanded, and defended this country. It’s a good year to remember that the Founding Fathers’ political convictions were not of their time but for all times.
Self-government and personal freedom are not “patriarchal.” They are achievable pursuits. Civic virtue is not “parochial.” It is inspirational. Patriotism is not “toxic,” “racist,” or “white supremacist.” It is the fount of heroic sacrifice.
We Americans have seen and done more than most because the Americans who came before us saw and did more than most. It is in this tradition — whereby one American generation grabs the baton from the one before and pushes forward — that American Exceptionalism becomes the standard that reshapes the world.
The spectators in the crowd do not merely see the next runner with fresh legs; they see the tired runner who refuses to slow down. They see the American who persists despite outrageous odds. They shake their heads and unknowingly grin as they recognize something alluring and astonishing that makes America uniquely great.
Those who do not recognize what a tremendous honor it is to live here are unworthy of America’s gifts. Those who criticize America’s past from luxurious perches built by America’s past builders are unwise. Those who celebrate themselves rather than our American ancestors are unprincipled.
In the two-hundred-fiftieth year of this nation’s life, reach down and grab its soil. Breathe its air. Enjoy the essence of this country’s history and the indomitable spirit of its people.
Those who love this country will protect its future. Those who wish to destroy this country love only themselves. Patriots, pay no heed to the destroyers. Be builders instead.
Pro-MAGA. Pro-Trump. Pro-America. Pro-Family. Most importantly, Pro-Jesus. Here’s the news aggregator that delivers what America needs right now: jdrucker.com