I remember well thinking as a child how fortunate I was to have been born in America. And I was, I’ve traveled extensively and love many other places, but America is my home. It has been very, very good to me, and I deeply appreciate all it has given me. I love America.
That the United States should be in such turmoil at this time, the 250th Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, is both troubling and understandable. Never has the integrity of the nation been under such stress, being pulled apart by the venal and ignorant radicals on the right and left. But that’s the nature of a free nation, that people are free to make choices, even if their choices are poor or corrupt. And we are free to make other choices, whether to stop the venal or ignorant or to stand up for the founding principles that have served to make this great nation what it is today.
I choose the latter. It’s not that everything American is right or perfect. Much wrong has been done, and much can be done better. But the principles behind this nation are good and pure, even if they have too often been ignored or twisted for the transitory convenience of the few.
Rather than sit back and do nothing to help, I write this blawg, as I have since February 13, 2007, in the hope that my words, the only tools I have as a lawyer, contribute to making the United States the best it can be. America can be the land of the free and the home of the brave if we make the choice to keep it that way.
We hold these truths to be self-evident, 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.
I will continue the fight for these truths. I hope you will too. Happy birthday, America.
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I struggle to describe my feelings on this subject. Finding words is difficult. I’ll try.
Rooting for stuff doesn’t happen with me. I grew up in a city with all the major teams. The Swamp has at least two of each–three for football. I’m not a fan of any. Rooting, wishing and hoping just doesn’t work for me. I watch games, but it’s to see the game. There’s no cache to who wins. My hoping adds nothing to the outcome and it doesn’t affect me. I can’t ignore reality to change reality.
It’s not an apt comparison, but I also don’t root for the country. For sure, I have deep respect for all that was required to keep this experiment going for 250 years. An unpayable bill is owed to those who made it last and protected its keep. The flag from my dad’s casket goes on the 35-foot pole in my front yard on Memorial and Veterans’ Days.
But it hasn’t gone up on the 4th for at least 20 years. I’m not protesting. The 4th is about rooting for the country, something I just can’t do, and it’s mostly done blindly. The condition of the country isn’t considered. The faithfulness to the ideals in the Declaration and the structure for rules in the Constitution aren’t in the rooting. It’s a “my country, right or wrong” day. It should be a get the country right day.
The country just isn’t right, and it’s the fault of the government and the governed. The government doesn’t address the core function: continue the experiment for the benefit of the governed. It’s increasingly lawless in its effort to push agendas that don’t benefit the people. It is the enemy of the people. The governed don’t see it. They root for their team, right or wrong. Truths aren’t self-evident; truth is that made by the teams. But the experiment in democracy requires constant tending. It isn’t a game to be watched.
Scott, thanks for tending. Thanks for keeping the lights on in this here Hotel. The bar is open–make the first toast to Jefferson and Franklin.
The perfect food is also the perfect garnish. It was also a near-perfect night–we had the best steaks, ever, anywhere, and Rich visited his dad’s former condo. Of course, we first had to get past the guard at the gate.
Whether it’s the radicals on the left with their land acknowledgments and email pronouns, or the radicals on the right ignoring the plain language of the Constitution because they hate every immigrant who arrived after their family did, both sides are tearing this country apart!
You can say a lot about what this blog. Whether it contains anything resembling the truth is a dubious proposition.
Sad that you can’t see yourself, but at least this comment isn’t as bizarrely incoherent as usual.
Tough to tell which comments originate from people, from bots, or from people who are functionally bots.
Many of us appreciate your ongoing work, Scott. Even when the news is all bad, there is something very reassuring in hearing it from a principled, trustworthy source such as yourself.
Happy 4th to the patriots…and to the nationalists—calm yourselves. Pluralism/liberalism entails a sometimes messy, never-complete project, but also a much more enjoyable country than the alternative you *think* you want.
The Hotel’s grease trap needs to be sucked-out. Do that and we’ll decide whether you can enter the bar.
for the next 2250:
Thank you for sharing the Jose feliciano rendition of the national anthem
Here in Mich it was one year after the 1967 Detroit riots. Ernie Harwell our beloved radio broadcaster asked Feliciano to singit at Tiger Stadium
; it was a controversial choice.
Happy 4th
as steven wright said, “worse comes to worst… we’re screwed.” but I think there are many reasons, including (even) the existence of this site, to think we’re going to dodge the bullet. But it will take effort and attention. To cite the cancelled man, “More than any other time in history, mankind faces a crossroads. One path leads to despair and utter hopelessness. The other, to total extinction. Let us pray we have the wisdom to choose correctly.”