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The Fabric of America

Tomorrow is the 4th of July.  Traditionally, it is a celebration of America’s independence; the birth of what was to become the greatest country in the world; the formation of a great democracy in a world of monarchs and dictatorships.
Regardless of one’s political persuasion, it must be readily admitted that the political scene in regard to the 2020 presidential election is one of chaos.  So many individuals have entered the race that it’s beginning to resemble the Boston Marathon. Recently in Iowa, there was a dinner where 19 Democratic candidates had the opportunity to speak.  Now there’s a recipe for indigestion!  In town meetings and interviews these president-want-to be’s spout off idealistic concepts that have no way or means of working and would, if instigated, result in devastating repercussions for our country; concepts that nonetheless draw cheers from a young, gullible, naive and ignorant audience.  They use terms like free healthcare, free education, guaranteed income, equality and unity.  They assert that the present administration is destroying the fabric of America, which begs the question, what is the fabric of America?  What are we made of? By reviewing history I can easily say what we were made of but what is the fabric of America today?

In fact, what is an American? I can easily describe an Irishman, a Frenchman and a Brit because of their unique customs and traditions. In an older country, there seems to have come a time when certain customs and traditions have evolved and have become characteristic of that country; attributes whose population refuses to abandon regardless of outside pressures to do so. So what about America’s customs and traditions? We used to celebrate Thanksgiving but according to the New York Times our history lessons are lies. It seems that the Pilgrims came to America in search of money, not in search of religious freedom (Nov. 21, 2017; Everything You Learned About Thanksgiving is Wrong). We can still be thankful for that! We celebrate Christmas but we can’t say, “Merry Christmas” because we might offend someone. We used to honor the flag but today it’s burned in public.  We used to stand in honor the National Anthem but today athletes refuse to do so.  We used to believe in justice but today a criminal is considered by many to be a victim and so we incarcerate them in country club prisons. We used to believe in the value of life, but now we slaughter our children. We used to believe in law and order, but now we allow thousands of illegal immigrants to flood into our country while we ignore our laws because they lack compassion. If we disregard one law how can we enforce the others? We used to be proud of our history, good and bad, because those are the events that made us who we are, but today we allow our statues and historical icons to be destroyed or hidden away.  Nike, a major athletic sportswear company just stopped the distribution of their new tennis shoe design that featured an older version of the American flag because there were those who felt offended because it was a time when slavery was present in our country. So, what does that leave us?  Well, I suppose it leaves us with a country that believes in individual freedoms more than social law and order; a country that tolerates individual tastes more than social stability; a country that has no identity because of the assimilation of migrants who have brought with them their customs and traditions and have diluted our own.  So, who is an American and what the fabric of this country? You might say that we are a country of freedoms, but freedom does not mean anything goes. That attitude only leads to chaos. American freedom means that we have the freedom to choose the laws under which we will live, and once established, live within the limitations and restrictions of those laws.  We are a country that has tolerated beyond reason. We have abandoned the ideals of our founding fathers, our customs, our traditions and our standards in an attempt not to ruffle feathers, step on toes, or offend others to the point of losing our national identity. Sadly, America has no fabric.

 

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