Patriotism and Election Year Blues
To the kind woman who called me today to hear my political views: I'm sorry. You called at a bad time. The baby was fussing, I was about to get in the shower, I was still stewing about two recent frustrating interactions... and it's an election year. Can you try calling back when I can be more reasoned in my response to your questions? Because if you did, I might tell you this: One summer when I was still young and observing American culture like the outsider I was, I attended a church camp-out where leaders I respected sat around the campfire making jokes about leaders I knew they were supposed to respect. They were disparaging, stopping only just shy of wishing evil on the man in the presidential office. However old I was, I remember heading back to my tent as the campfire sank low and feeling sick. What was this "great American country" and its "unsurpassed government system" that allowed for such vilification? Not just in heated debates but se...