RECIPE FOR GREATNESS

After 242 years, it’s high time.

On July 5, 1852, the brilliant orator Frederick Douglass, in his monumental speech “What to the Slave is the 4th of July?” opined that at 76 years old, America’s age was but a speck in the life of a nation that was “still lingering” in childhood.

Douglass offered hope that because America was still in her impressible stage, wisdom, justice and truth would give direction to America’s destiny.

Douglass went on to speak words that resonate today as much as they did in 1852. “Go where you may, search where you will; search out every abuse and when you have found the last, lay your facts by the side of the everyday practices of this nation, and you will say with me that, for revolting barbarity and shameless hypocrisy, America reigns without a rival.”

As if on cue, an American terrorist murdered at least 12 people last night in California, on the heels of another American terrorist murdering 11 Jews in Pittsburgh, which came on the heels of another American terrorist mailing pipe bombs to 16 prominent American citizens.

“Whether we turn to the declarations of the past, or the professions of the present,” Douglass said, in words that still ring true, “the conduct of the nation seems equally hideous and revolting. America is false to the past, false to the present and solemnly binds herself to be false to the future.”

And as if on cue, yesterday the president of the United States gave a rambling, unstable, mostly untruthful, devoid-of-reality press conference that reinforced concern about his mental state, as well as the future and safety of the nation.

No longer young, America fails to live up to the two documents that established our nation, the Declaration of Independence, penned 242 years ago, and the 231-year old Constitution of the United States, which has been periodically amended.

Make America great…again?

The concept of American greatness has been ubiquitous since June 16, 2015, when Donald Trump announced his candidacy for president, borrowing a campaign slogan from President Ronald Reagan, “Make America Great Again,” and red caps with the slogan appeared seemingly everywhere.

The debate about U.S. greatness has renewed; whether the U.S. was ever great, is now great or has the capacity to be great in the future.

Michelle Obama, speaking at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia in July 2016, vouched for American greatness saying America is already great. Hearing this, I figured the First Lady said America is great because she had to say that.

Saying America is great is a reflexive comment many politicians utter because it is political suicide to say otherwise. It’s not a good practice for politicians to say, “America is good” or “America is OK.” No, they almost always say, “America is great!”

But is America truly great?

A (no pun intended) great question

The day after the Declaration of Independence was unanimously approved by the United Colonies, John Adams said, “Yesterday the greatest question was decided which ever was debated in America; and a greater perhaps never was, nor will be, decided among men.”

Nearly two and a half centuries later, another great question must be asked. Has America, guided by the twin foundations of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States, achieved the greatness those great documents outline?

No doubt, there have been inspired moments of greatness, far too many to list in this space. Just in my lifetime, examples of technological greatness include man walking on the moon and the rapid development of personal computers and mobile phones which double as computers.

A moment of American sports greatness happened when the U.S. hockey team stunned the heavily favored Russians to win the gold medal, on American soil, at the 1980 Winter Olympics.

Political and social greatness were on display with the passage of the Civil Rights Act in 1964 and the Voting Rights Act in 1965.

It must, however, be noted the fact the Voting Rights Act was passed in 1965 was an admission that America was not great, considering the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments to the Constitution (signed into law in 1868 and 1870 respectively) support that all American citizens have the right to vote. The need for a voting rights act 100 years later is an indication of America’s un-eagerness to comply with the guide to greatness, the Constitution.

Because of our abysmal record preserving something as fundamental as voting rights, America cannot claim great nation status.

As was evident with this week’s midterm elections, voter suppression, tampering with voting equipment (by Americans), misleading voters about what type of identification is required, relocating polling places to make it more difficult to get to the polls, lying to voters about where they can vote, racist lies about candidates, etc. are still rampant across America. The behavior is Third-Worldly, not befitting of any nation arguing its greatness.

A path to greatness

What America needs is an honest, introspective look in the mirror, because the mirror don’t lie.

The answer to the question, Is America great? is a plaintive “No.”

As mentioned earlier, there have been moments of inspiring greatness. But sustained, consistent, permanent greatness evades us.

So, what should America do to get on the path to genuine, sustainable greatness? Not having all the answers, posited below are some basics that are necessary for greatness.

To begin, stop accepting lying, lawbreaking and fearmongering. America is supposed to be a nation of laws, governed by the rule of law. Yet we are watching a systematic dismantling of basic norms like telling the truth, abiding by laws and valuing the contributions of all Americans.

We should act with courage and a sense of purpose. John Adams and his peers showed tremendous courage, breaking away from tyranny of the King of England.

Throughout our history, America’s military, especially those in rank-and-file positions who are most vulnerable to being sent into combat, has protected us with courage and greatness.

Politicians, often prompted by citizens who demand it, show courage and greatness. Franklin D. Roosevelt and his New Deal. Lyndon Johnson’s Great Society. Barack Obama’s Affordable Care Act.

The Women’s March in early-2017 was a vivid demonstration of greatness.

America must commit to do the right thing. Most people know right from wrong yet too many everyday people, politicians and media purposefully and knowingly do wrong.

A prime example is Mitch McConnell. McConnell is an inherently evil man. So long as McConnell, the pliable Trump, fake-Christian Mike Pence, Lindsey Graham, and the cabal of wrongdoers in the majority are in place, America will not be great.

At the same time, liberal-minded Americans must stop caring more about migrants from Central America (or from anyplace for that matter) than they do about Americans.

Clearly, only a heartless person would express no empathy for the plight of those in the migrant caravan. And despite Trump’s lies and Fox News’ lies to the contrary, the caravan people are not a violent threat that requires sending our military to the border, much less rogue militia groups going to the border.

However, until America vastly improves how we treat our own citizens, we cannot be counted on to properly care for people in the migrant caravan or immigrants in general. A realistic immigration policy should be put in place before America takes on the migrant caravan, or any other group trying to come to America. But first we must faithfully take care of our citizens who haven’t gotten a fair shake.

As it is, Native Americans have been shamefully treated, as have black Americans, as have poor people of all races, who are disproportionately called upon to fight our wars and unknowingly forced to breathe toxic air and drink lead-filled water.

Greatness requires local governments stop pouring resources into already affluent neighborhoods and allocate desperately needed resources to forgotten neighborhoods.

Greatness requires New Orleans and Puerto Rico receive the same proficient response to a natural disaster as Houston gets.

The sooner America levels the playing field for Native and black Americans and poor people of all races, the sooner initiatives, for example Affirmative Action (another acknowledgment America is not great), can be eliminated. It won’t be easy and may take a generation or two to level the playing field.

Greatness also requires black Americans to stop killing each other as if they are playing the video game Grand Theft Auto. And it requires black hip hop artists to stop glorifying a gangster, misogynistic lifestyle. It requires black men, too many of whom father children then refuse to serve in the role as dad, to grow up and act responsibly.

Greatness requires that America stop undoing environmental protections and return to full participation in the Paris Climate Agreement.

Greatness requires that government officials stop lying to citizens who depend on officials to tell the truth about what’s in the water they drink and the air they breathe. Greatness requires prosecution and prison time for those, no matter their title, caught covering up environmental hazards.

Greatness requires America get over its war fetish and stop annually spending $600 billion on defense, which is 50% of the federal discretionary spending budget, and instead direct a meaningful portion of those dollars to healthcare and education and infrastructure.

Greatness requires America to return to full participation in the Trans Pacific Partnership.

Greatness requires America to fully punish Russia for interfering in our election.

Greatness requires America to hold Facebook, Google and others fully accountable, with real consequences, for enabling and/or standing by while foreign adversaries and domestic users abuse their platforms.

Greatness requires Dems not to fall for Trump’s attempts at post-midterm olive branch seduction. It is possible to legislate and investigate simultaneously.

Greatness requires the House Judiciary and Intelligence Committees, and any other relevant committees now led by Democrats, to pursue with the same vigor Republicans used to obstruct finding out the truth about what Donald Trump is hiding from the American people. Leads related to Russia, taxes, business dealings, paying off prostitutes, and anything else that is uncovered during a thorough investigation should be followed.

Greatness requires Americans to become more informed and think for themselves, rather than asking “How high?” when a politician, cable news host, pundit or minister tells them to jump.

Greatness requires some of the media to stop falling for deceptive tricks designed to throw them off the scent of what matters.

Greatness requires the Catholic Church to stop knowingly and covertly shuffling perverted pastors from one town to the next, cloaked in the robe of priesthood. And it requires evangelicals to relocate their moral compass, if they ever had one, and stop pretending to be Christians while excusing and supporting the sins of Trump and Co.

Greatness requires politicians to stop quivering at the mention of the NRA, and the Second Amendment, and pass highly restrictive gun legislation to slow America’s gun carnage which, according to the CDC and FBI, in 2016 cost 38,000 American lives in gun-related deaths, including 11,000 homicides.

Greatness requires removal of impunity, replaced by prosecution and imprisonment of all police who murder and otherwise brutalize American citizens, including cops who file false reports in support of police who unjustly kill citizens.

Unfortunately, greatness is unachievable so long as America is saddled with the self-infliction that is the most incompetent, unqualified president in U.S. history, enabled by the most incompetent, unqualified administration in U.S. history.

America is not great. Never has been. But with vast, unparalleled resources at America’s disposal, and the advantage of a diverse populace unmatched anywhere in the world, anything is possible.

Douglas FreelandNovember 8, 2018