I fear for our Republic.
Not because of any external threat. I'm afraid for my nation because instead of being the "home of the brave" it's now the "home of the afraid."
On September 11, 2001, I was 36 years old. I had already voted in five Presidential elections, and five mid-terms. Fifteen years later, I've added three more Presidential elections and three more midterms. And each year, I notice that our electoral decisions are driven not by our civic duty, not by a desire to ensure America's success and independence, but by fear.
Since 9/11, I have watched as we've become a nation of scaredy-cats, jumping at every shadow, and allowing fear to rule the societal decision we make. Consider:
- We used to be a nation who valued freedom and liberty. And yet we allowed legislation that led to the single greatest compromise of our personal freedom and liberty in the history of our country: the so-called "Patriot Act." Small strides have been made to rescind specific portions of the Act, the ones people consider most egregious, but let's all be honest here: Once a government agency has the authority to spy on its own people, they're not just going to stop because some pointy-headed wonk tells them to. They're just not, and most politicians are too afraid to force the issue. Organizations like the EFF try to lead, but it's an uphill battle.
- The far right has managed to demonize Muslims to the point where people are starting to consider them an existential threat. This belief leads us to profiling, active discrimination against Muslims, demands to deny American Muslims their civil rights, and hate crimes against Muslims. Can we not see how profoundly un-American this is? Do we really want our nation to continue the legacy of discrimination and demonetization of the "other," or do we want to live up to our promise of the great melting pot, taking in your tired, your hungry, your poor? Do we want to honor the First Amendment to the Constitution, or abandon it in practice because we're afraid? Hell, after 15 years of this rhetoric, people I know and love are now bigots when it comes to Muslims, and I can't tell you how disappointed and sad this makes me.*
- We're now a nation that is addicted to security theater, spending time and money on programs that change nothing, in an effort to make ourselves feel better. This desire is so strong that we're willing to give up our Constitutional Rights in order to fool ourselves.
Nothing makes this so evident as the campaign of that misogynistic bigot Donald Trump. The man's a complete joke, an unserious clown who is eminently unqualified to lead the last super-power on the planet. And yet his message resonates with significant portion of our population. He wants to "make America great again." Anyone with a lick of sense and a poor grasp of history knows this is a dog-whistle - what he's really saying is he wants the country to go back to the days when straight, white men had all the power and everyone who fell into "other" categories - women, brown people, LGBT+ people - could like it or lump it. Has there ever been a more clear-cut example of privilege, fighting for its unearned place in our society? And yet, this message resonates. Why?
I think it's fear. Fear of the unknown, Fear of giving up that which you haven't earned, but feel entitled to. Fear of the "other." Fear of having our nice, comfortable existence taken away. Fear of being a minority. Fear of being left behind. Fear of having to compromise.
Living my life without fear is something I strive for each and every day. It's a cornerstone of my life, and it's not easy. In fact it's hard as hell, and sometimes I fail. But it's the key to, as the Incomparable Anne™ notes, living a non-meh life.
And I think it's the key to living in a non-meh country, too. I want to live in a country governed not by fear, but by courage. A country that makes the hard decisions, for the benefit of all, not the easy decisions, for the benefit of the few. A country that will stand bravely, and not give in to fear.
Maybe we've never been that country, although I think we've had flashes of amazing courage in our history. The more I learn about our sociological history, the more I don't know. But I want us to be brave. For us, and for our children, and for our grandchildren. I want our legacy to be one of courage, of doing the right thing. It's not easy, and sometimes we'll fail. But we're worth it, and so is America.
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*I understand why people allow themselves to be led in this direction. It's a response to a lack of power, and a lack of understanding, and an abundance of fear. And yet, as the Smart Man notes, a bigot is a bigot, regardless of motivation, and as such the behavior is unworthy of my respect.
**Please note that a "privileged group" includes many variables such as race, religion, country of origin, socioeconomic status, stability of the birth family, sexual orientation, availability of good schools, and more. Many of these intersect, so that an individual might be privileged in one variable, and oppressed in another. It's complicated, and I'm not trying to oversimplify.