Republicans Don't Really Hate America -- They Just Don't Understand It
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Posted to the Brouhaha Link
Our good friend Dr. Chomsky said "If we don't believe in freedom of expression for people we despise, we don't believe in it at all. "
I don't think Republicans hate America at all. I just think they are completely heartless and cruel in their ideas about what America should be on the international stage and clueless as to how the country should be run internally. I better question might be "Do Republicans understand America? Or do they still believe in the feel-good myths about America (George Washington and his cherry tree, et al.)?
Now, of course, the Conservatives will pop right back with the typical playground response -- "Nuh-UHHHHH, LIBERALS don't understand America!" A few of them might actually cut and paste some things that back up that point of view. And even fewer will make intelligent arguments of their own to support their point of view. Because there is a point to be made. MOST of us don't understand America, liberal or conservative. We were raised with sub-par history texts and underpaid, overworked teachers. We fell asleep in civics class or were too busy feeling up the girl next to us in government to care about it. We spent more time reading Mad magazine than the Federalist Papers. The biggest thing we know about Jefferson is that he might have had a kid with one of his slaves. We debate IBM Selectric typewriters more than we do missing WMD's. We run campaigns on 35 year old war records instead of ideas for the present and future.
This leads us to a bigger problem. Since we don't even understand our own history, we don't understand our place in the world. For many Americans, history began on July 4, 1776 (or possibly in 1607 with Jamestown or 1620 with those mythical cats, the Pilgrims). We are rather like the stubborn people who refused to believe that the Earth moved around the Sun -- we can't possibly imagine a world in which every waking thought of every single person doesn't revolve around America. We wonder why Europe is squeamish about getting involved in religious tinted wars -- forgetting the long history of such conflicts on that continent. We wonder at the lasting animosity that colonialism inspires in people -- forgetting that our own country was founded as a fight against colonial oppression. We forget the genocide that cleared this land for white settlers. We forget that our 20th/21st century prosperity has been built on exploiting the natural resources of other countries -- at the price of promoting democracy. We associate wealth with freedom and are too willing to sacrifice liberty for safety. Benjamin Franklin said, "Those who would sacrifice liberty for safety deserve neither liberty nor safety."
Finally, I'll leave you all with a quote from Jefferson, which I think sums up the current state of affairs in America today.
"The spirit of the times may alter, will alter. Our rulers will become corrupt, our people careless. A single zealot may commence persecutor, and better men be his victims. It can never be too often repeated that the time for fixing every essential right on a legal basis is while our rulers are honest and ourselves united. From the conclusion of [the] war [for independence, this nation will begin] going down hill. It will not then be necessary to resort every moment to the people for support. They will be forgotten, therefore, and their rights disregarded. They will forget themselves but in the sole faculty of making money, and will never think of uniting to effect a due respect for their rights. The shackles, therefore, which shall not be knocked off at the conclusion of [this] war will remain on [them] long, will be made heavier and heavier, till [their] rights shall revive or expire in a convulsion."
btw: Type "failure" into the Google search engine and press the "I Feel Lucky" button
Our good friend Dr. Chomsky said "If we don't believe in freedom of expression for people we despise, we don't believe in it at all. "
I don't think Republicans hate America at all. I just think they are completely heartless and cruel in their ideas about what America should be on the international stage and clueless as to how the country should be run internally. I better question might be "Do Republicans understand America? Or do they still believe in the feel-good myths about America (George Washington and his cherry tree, et al.)?
Now, of course, the Conservatives will pop right back with the typical playground response -- "Nuh-UHHHHH, LIBERALS don't understand America!" A few of them might actually cut and paste some things that back up that point of view. And even fewer will make intelligent arguments of their own to support their point of view. Because there is a point to be made. MOST of us don't understand America, liberal or conservative. We were raised with sub-par history texts and underpaid, overworked teachers. We fell asleep in civics class or were too busy feeling up the girl next to us in government to care about it. We spent more time reading Mad magazine than the Federalist Papers. The biggest thing we know about Jefferson is that he might have had a kid with one of his slaves. We debate IBM Selectric typewriters more than we do missing WMD's. We run campaigns on 35 year old war records instead of ideas for the present and future.
This leads us to a bigger problem. Since we don't even understand our own history, we don't understand our place in the world. For many Americans, history began on July 4, 1776 (or possibly in 1607 with Jamestown or 1620 with those mythical cats, the Pilgrims). We are rather like the stubborn people who refused to believe that the Earth moved around the Sun -- we can't possibly imagine a world in which every waking thought of every single person doesn't revolve around America. We wonder why Europe is squeamish about getting involved in religious tinted wars -- forgetting the long history of such conflicts on that continent. We wonder at the lasting animosity that colonialism inspires in people -- forgetting that our own country was founded as a fight against colonial oppression. We forget the genocide that cleared this land for white settlers. We forget that our 20th/21st century prosperity has been built on exploiting the natural resources of other countries -- at the price of promoting democracy. We associate wealth with freedom and are too willing to sacrifice liberty for safety. Benjamin Franklin said, "Those who would sacrifice liberty for safety deserve neither liberty nor safety."
Finally, I'll leave you all with a quote from Jefferson, which I think sums up the current state of affairs in America today.
"The spirit of the times may alter, will alter. Our rulers will become corrupt, our people careless. A single zealot may commence persecutor, and better men be his victims. It can never be too often repeated that the time for fixing every essential right on a legal basis is while our rulers are honest and ourselves united. From the conclusion of [the] war [for independence, this nation will begin] going down hill. It will not then be necessary to resort every moment to the people for support. They will be forgotten, therefore, and their rights disregarded. They will forget themselves but in the sole faculty of making money, and will never think of uniting to effect a due respect for their rights. The shackles, therefore, which shall not be knocked off at the conclusion of [this] war will remain on [them] long, will be made heavier and heavier, till [their] rights shall revive or expire in a convulsion."
btw: Type "failure" into the Google search engine and press the "I Feel Lucky" button
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