Chris Bertram at Crooked Timber appears to miss the difference between thoughts and things.
— The thirteen original states that brought us the Constitution voted overwhelmingly for John Kerry.Some of his "lasting contributions" are inconsequential, and as for the others he appears to miss the point completely. Sure, the geographical land masses that housed the men who wrote the Constitution now house people who voted for John Kerry -- and so what? What type of document would the residents of the thirteen original states craft now, given the opportunity? The American Constitution, or something like that of European Union?
— The states that didn’t secede and which fought against slavery voted overwhelmingly for John Kerry.
— Black America which brought us in Martin Luther King, one of the greatest moral exemplars of modern times as well as the blues, jazz and soul voted overwhelmingly for John Kerry.
— California, home of the modern motion picture industry, voted for Kerry.These are the great American achievements: the United States’ lasting contribution to freedom, culture and progress. Sadly, that America, the America of which Americans have the most reason to be proud and foreigners have the most reason to admire, just lost. Again.
Don't get me started on Martin Luther King Jr., plagiarist and philanderer. Slavery is pretty much a dead issue, except for the statists who do everything possible to keep black Americans dependent on the government. The movie industry? Please.
A cursory examination of the evidence will reveal something very significant, perhaps even to Mr. Bertram. America is the richest nation in the world, and has been for decades. America contributes more to charity, at home and abroad, than any other nation. America has shed more blood and spent more treasure in the battles against tyranny and oppression than has any other nation. America feeds the world. America heals the world. America protects the world. America facilitates trade and keeps peace on the high seas. America funds more scientific research than any other ten nations. America leads the way in space exploration. America leads the way in economic and social freedom. America is more tolerant and less discriminatory than any other nation in the history of mankind. And why? What else is unique about us? Do we have the tallest skyscrapers or the most erudite and sophisticated intelligentsia? No?
America is the most Christian nation in the world. It is the values and ethics of the Red States that made America great... beliefs that began before one foot was set in the thirteen original states and philosophies that no longer reside there. The vast Red ocean (how grand it is to reclaim that color!) stretching from coast to coast forms the bedrock not only of American greatness, but also of global security and prosperity. The New York elites and Los Angeles studio heads may be ignorant and blind enough to snap at the hands that feed and shelter them, but they would do well to realize that Reagan's "shining city on a hill" isn't really a city at all, but rather a web of "flyover" counties that glues us all together and carries the world on its back.
MW: "It is the values and ethics of the Red States that made America great"
Oh please. America's prosperity isn't the child of any one side... red or blue.
America's prosperity belongs to and was provided for by ALL of the states.
Extremists on the far right can be found in red states... and extremists on the far left can be found in blue states.
This country isn't about extremists, though. If this country were ruled by its extremes, we'd have a western version of the Middle East... replete with totalitarian philosophies and take-no-prisoners attitudes. The word "moderate" would have no place in the list of this country's attributes.
America's greatest strength is its tolerance and acceptance of differing opinions, philosophies, cultures, livelihoods, religions (including those who subscribe to none at all), and the unification of all of it behind one simple concept: All men are created equal.. with the same rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. This wasn't championed by the "red states" or the "blue states"... but by an entire nation of states... red and blue alike.
It's the height of arrogance for you to claim that the credit for America's greatness should go to only the "red states".
Michael...
Pointing out that Martin Luther King Jr. was a plagiarist and a philanderer seems to me a little like pointing out that Paul was a blasphemer and murderer (indirectly). Sure, they were both sinners, but they were also both saved and men through whom God did great things. I'm not sure pointing out MLK Jr's sin had much of a point other than most likely offending more sensitive readers.
In fact, the whole notion of "red states" and "blue states" is somewhat ridiculous anyway. Many "red states" have significant percentages of Democratic voters... and many "blue states" have significant percentages of Republican voters.
And of the entire voting population? There's a 3% gap between majority and minority. Are we really to believe that those 59 million people are what make this country great... and that the remaining 55 million have no part in that greatness?
Mark: I see your point, but as the title of my post asserts, it's not the people or places that make us great, but the ideas. And the ideas of the "Red" side are the best ones. The "Blue" people contribute, of course, but they fortunately have to exist within the "Red" framework established by the majority. If a majority of people had wanted to follow Kerry's agenda, if the "Blue" ideas were ascendent, our nation would not be in the same great position.
Megan: The difference of course being that Paul repented and changed his ways, whereas MLK merely hid his sin in one case and built his legacy on it in the other.
Mark: I'm not talking about people, I'm talking about ideas. For the most part, the Blue ideas would be disasterous for our nation.
Well, I'm not sure of Martin Luther King Jr's need to publicly repent of his sin. I mean, I suppose it discredits his testimony to an extent and thus, brings doubt to the message he brought, but I don't think it completely counterfeits his works or his legacy.
And since we're making all these silly historical comparisons, i'd like to point out another:
The states that DID secede have ALL firmly embraced the Republican Party, the party of Lincoln and abolition, while many of the northern states have abandoned it.
Makes about as much sense as the other comparisons.
Mark Nelson :Good point.
MW: Not worth taking on MLK. 97% of non-racists are going to stop listening when you say something unflattering about him. Find some other way to make your point. But feel free to go off on CSK.
BTW, the full sentence in the Declaration of Independence is: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." The DoI stipulates that our rights come from the Creator, ie, GOD.
MW: Of course you're going to say that the "red side"'s ideas are the best... and that is still incredibly arrogant.
Many people who voted "blue", myself included, do not agree with some of Kerry's positions... so for you to assert that the "blue side" is a lock-step endorsement of Kerry's policies is woefully inaccurate.
Historically, there's plenty of virtue and good ideas from both the "red" and the "blue".
Picking out this election and using it as a barometer of all "blue" ideas is absurd.
Jim C: "The DoI stipulates that our rights come from the Creator, ie, GOD."
Yeah... but there's no mandate in the Constitution or DoI that everyone believe in "God" or pick a certain faith.
So it would seem to me that this notion.. that our rights came from "God".. that was shared by the founding fathers of this country.. is irrelevant.
Mark Nelson: "The states that DID secede have ALL firmly embraced the Republican Party, the party of Lincoln and abolition, while many of the northern states have abandoned it."
I thought we were done with the slavery thing.
The Republican party of then and the Republican party of today are quite different.
Mark: I wasn't using the election as a "barometer" to say that Blue ideas had been permanently rejected or were proven a failure because they lost. They've been proven a failure over decades and centuries, all around the world. This election just pushed them a little further back in America, but the price of freedom is eternal vigilence.
It was a BTW on the DoI. The sentence was parsed to exclude the most important part, God. Just trying to help.
But if you want to make an issue of it:
1)even if one does not believe in God, that does not mean your Rights do not come from Him. The freedom to believe what you want comes from a system based on the majority's belief in Christ. Try expresing your opinion in China, Iran, etc. I know some Jews that are grateful the country is founded on Christian principles, because that gives them the freedom to believe what they want. Maybe not perfect here, but freedom is better here than anywhere else in the world, and that comes from God. Belief in God by the majority is very relevant to the rights you enjoy. (Similar to pacifists whose security benefits from the sacrifices of soldiers who defend our country.)
2) hostility to God and his Law is one of the reasons the the Dems do badly and why the Dems will continue their slide. Keep spreading your word, because the majority sees through it and is mobilized against it. Thanks.
Jim C: "but freedom is better here than anywhere else in the world, and that comes from God."
If you believe in God, then yes.. those freedoms come from God.
Jim C: "hostility to God and his Law is one of the reasons the the Dems do badly and why the Dems will continue their slide. Keep spreading your word, because the majority sees through it and is mobilized against it."
False. Many Democrats are just as committed in their religious faith as you are.
MW: "They've been proven a failure over decades and centuries, all around the world."
False. Extreme ideas are often proven a failure... no matter if they're "red" or "blue" in origin.
America doesn't deal in extremes, though. No proposed "blue" or "red" idea is extreme. The "red" ideas aren't fascist and the "blue" ideas aren't socialist or communist.
You may think that the "blue" ideas are extreme.. but then look at where you fall on the ideological spectrum. Of course you're going to think that.
He's missing something vital, in any event. The men who lived in those 13 at the time -- the frontier -- moved west when the frontier went west, and left the same sort of people in the original 13 that they left in Europe.
Is America really the most tolerant and least driscriminatory nation in the history of mankind?
What makes it more tolerant than, say, Canada or Sweden?
Is it really the most Christian nation in the world? More Christian than, say Spain or Zambia?
For my money, America is successful because of its mineral rich history, low population density, and cheaply deployed industrial infrastructure.
jez: C'mon. Singapore and Taiwan are dense, mineral poor, and expensive. Japan too, to lesser degrees. They're all highly successful, but not Christian, so what's the common theme? Hmmmm....