The myth of America

Watched the History Channel's "The Story of Us," at least the episode on the American Revolution. It's a series. I wonder how many episodes. I missed the first one, and it seems they entirely skipped over the French & Indian War's role in laying the groundwork for the Revolution.

Oh well.  I don't think the series is targeted at hardcore history buffs. It seems intended to inspire. It hits all the major cliches -- "The shot heard 'round the world," Paul Revere's "The British are coming" (try saying that like you never heard it before), and the miserable hardship of Valley Forge.

The series also seems to pay particular attention to the number of blacks involved in colonial America -- not only as slaves, but the freemen of Boston -- and noted that Von Steuben was gay. I didn't know he was gay. I have a copy of his drill manual, though.

So what is this series all about? Reconciling US history with political correctness?

I don't mean to be harsh or overly critical, though. The first man who died in the Revoluion was a black mechanic, Crispus Attucks, killed in the "Boston Massacree."  And I have no problem with Von Steuben being gay. Do believe his drill manual was used up to an including the beginning of the Civil War in 1861. And possibly throughout the Civil War. The drill and approved conventions never did quite catch up to the innovations introduced during the Civil War, like really effective skirmishers and snipers armed with rifles, the use of railroads for logistics, cavalry with breach-loaded, repeating Spencers and Henrys, and telegraphic communications. Not to mention the iron-clads, land mines, and trench warfare.

Anyway.... "The Story of Us" appears to want to be inspiring, mainly. But they really kind of glossed over the whole idea behind the Revolution. They did quote the "life, liberty and pursuit of happiness" thing from the Declaration of Independence, and Newt Gingrich, as a commentator, noted that individual rights were, for the first time, claimed as coming from God rather than the government, and were "inalienable," or impossible to take away. And that's about it, as far as philosophy goes.

Maybe that's supposed to be enough. But it's really more myth now than reality in the USA.

In the ads for upcoming episodes, or maybe just an ad from sponsor Bank of America, a whole bunch of people from different backgrounds stand up and say "freedom" in different contexts. Like that's what it's all about.

That is what's all about. Or that's what it used to be all about. But I wonder if the word "freedom" has any real meaning anymore, or if it's just become some kind of nonsensical mantra for most people. Now it seems many citizens are much more concerned about getting their one-kind-or-another welfare check on time, getting surplus cheese or whatever, and complying with the beast-of-burden model of being forced to shoulder the expense of non-citizens who don't know anything about the USA, though they do recognize prosperity when they see it.

Like, I believe it was the AFL or the CIO or possible the UAW protesting "Wall Street Excesses" today. Honey, let me tell you -- that takes some nerve! Since those very same unions have extended unfunded and unfundable promises to their members about pensions and health care that they expect -- no, they DEMAND! -- that non-union citizens provide for them. I mean, after all, it's more important that the union leaders spend their own real and collected budgets on lobbying.

In Quncy, Illinois, on the Mississippi, and quite historic in some ways, too, the local cops called up a police Tactical Squad -- all dressed up in what looked like black leotards, like the "official" Jihadists in Iran -- to make sure no Tea Party person took a pot shot at the Comrade while he delivered one or another unremarkable load of bullshit to a hand-chosen choir.

Tell me when you see the "freedom" part of any of this.

Meanwhile, Mexico's official policy toward undocumented "immigrants" and "foreigners" crossing the border into their fine nation requires that the perpetrators be prosecuted and deported or spend up to a year in jail. But the Mexican government scolds us for trying to prevent their murderous drug-thugs from killing US citizens, let alone their "coyotes" defrauding and killing untold numbers of Mexicans by packing them into vans like cattle and shipping them across the border for non-existent jobs here. Mexico, also, has one hell of a nerve.

Apparently Mexico -- and apparently other nations along with oour own domestic liberals -- seem to be mistaking the USA for a cornucopia. That is to say, they regard the USA as so magically and everlastingly terrific, we can pay for every else's sins. We can "fix" everything for everyone.

They've been eating the same peyote buttons the Comrade is munching on.

So I find "The Story of Us" mainly very depressing. "Well, I used to love her, but it's all over now...."

If you keep dumping on US citizens, suppressing our inalienable rights, appropriating our property and the fruit of our labor, refusing to defend and protect us from foreign usurpers and invasion... eventually you do transform the nation. It becomes something like Mexico, or the USSR, or Zimbabwe, or Greece.

WE WORK FOR WHAT WE'VE GOT. TRY THAT. MAYBE IT'LL WORK FOR YOU, TOO. 'COURSE, IT IS A WHOLE LOT EASIER TO SIMPLY STEAL FROM US THAN TO MAKE IT ON YOUR OWN.

And making it "on your own" is what freedom is. It's not easy. It's not cheap. It can't be legislated. And apparently it can't be preserved or protected, either. At least not by the buttheads holding office right now.

Again with the Thomas Jefferson:  "The price of freedom is eternal vigilance." We haven't been vigilant enough. Especially internally. The myth of America is not enough, when our own government is right now working so diligently to destroy its reality.

And my cat died, too. And the USPS has failed to deliver two checks due to me. Possibly the IRS has adopted a new policy to streamline operations and improve efficiency: skip the part where the citizen gets paid for his or her work and just seize all income before it falls into the hands of the person who earned it.

All in all, not a good week.