Thursday, July 4, 2013

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Today marks the two hundred thirty-seventh anniversary of the declared independence of the United States from Great Britain (the establishment of the nation as a nation came some years later, since it could not be confirmed until the Revolutionary War--something of a misnomer--was won, and the current Constitutional government is younger even than that).  As has been the case once or twice before, I find myself musing on the ideas that the day is supposed to commemorate and those that it celebrates in practice.

Ideally, the holiday celebrates what it is to be an American, or what is best about being American.  The willingness to stand for the right even if standing alone, to rely on the self and not drag down others, to work relentlessly to improve upon the world are good things and should be celebrated (although I am not convinced that they are strictly American).  The ideal that people can make things better for themselves is one well worth striving towards--and although the striving is not done yet, it remains a thing to do with all diligence.

In practice, though, it has become a celebration of what is...not so fortunate about America.  Brooklyn offers easy examples.  Already, it devolves into disorganized hordes crowding the streets and parks, people each acting for themselves and commonly to the annoyance or injury of others.  People are being drawn in to stores, not so much to buy food to share with friends and family, but to buy clothes and shoes "on sale" and clutter their lives with more crass material that tries and fails to ease the longings for importance and significance they feel.  And on Coney Island, preparations are being made for a spectacle of gluttony--the Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest.  People gorge themselves on highly processed and decidedly unhealthy food on camera and for the entertainment of others while a scant few blocks away children are starving to death in the streets.

Clearly, there is more striving to do.  Let us take thought for what is best and do more to work towards it.

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