Celebrating the United States

As we head into the United States latest birthday celebration next week, I can’t help thinking a year ahead. That’s because 2026 will mark Uncle Sam’s 250th birthday.

Technically, that will be known as the “semi-quincentennial” (no wonder it was easier to say “bicentennial” nearly 50 years ago).

For me, the next July 4 will be a notable occasion because 2026 will mark 50 years since I first set foot in West Virginia. With “Mountaineers Are Always Free” the state’s official motto, we heartily align with the Declaration of Independence.

And yet, as I reflect on what has happened the past 50 years, the optimism I once felt for the land of the free and the home of the brave has suffered some setbacks.

Cause for Concern

Two things concern me.

One is the horrendous drug abuse problems that have wreaked havoc on our society. Our state has a foster child crisis so bad it has attracted national attention. The problem is rooted in drug use that plagues families, leaves parents unwilling or unable to work, and leads to neglect, abuse, and serious injury.

The other is the hatred so many Americans seem to harbor for their own country, although this impression may be due more to the folks with the loudest megaphones. Voices that are given free reign spread discontent, anger, class hatred, racism, and other ills online.

The situation reminds of what a pastor in eastern Ohio said after the discord that followed a crisis in his community: “We’d have been fine without Facebook.”

I have long been a free speech advocate. Yet, sometimes I find the concept seriously challenged by the hysteria spread at the speed of lightning.

When I have such feelings, I remember the journalism professor who taught us that the cure to misinformed speech is more speech. That’s a truism proved by the speech codes adopted by so many in academia that—rather than promoting free speech—wind up leading to unconstitutional censorship.

Moving Forward

Granted, we are a nation still grappling with its legacy of racism. And yet, the blemishes of the past ought not to deter us from moving forward to guarantee that life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness are a reality, not a pleasant-sounding platitude.

On that score, we have made admirable progress. The discrimination once practiced routinely, whether it involved race, gender, or disability, is largely a thing of the past. Where pockets still try to rear their ugly head, there are legal remedies and methods to address the situation.

Aside from that, I think too many Americans fail to appreciate the profound advancement our nation’s formation played in the history of the world.

Never before had a self-governing democratic republic been established, a rebuke to the British monarchy that pressed so hard on the colonies that it ultimately led to armed revolt.

Echo Chambers

I think too many Americans live in the self-destructive echo chambers that govern so much public discourse. Negative, anti-American voices blame the country for all the world’s ills while failing to appreciate the promise it represents.

I say that because of the Ukrainian immigrants in my family who had nothing but praise for the United States. They loved its freedom, its opportunities, and its stability.

So did the immigrants I met in more recent years. Whether from China, the Far East, Africa, or other places, all praised their adopted homeland as the best place around.

Sometimes, one can’t appreciate one’s own country unless you have ventured outside its borders and compared life here to life there.

To get to the bottom line, I say, 🎆“Happy birthday, America.”🎇