Reflections, observations, random thoughts and bon mots, relating to the literary and
geographic landscapes of American history. And book reviews too.
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Where Our Nation Reunited
Slavery was ended. The nation would not again see such a divisive trial until the Ground Zero Mosque War of 2010, when law-abiding American Muslims proposed building a cultural center in an old Burlington Coat Factory building.
The unthinking, unself-aware vitriol over the Ground Zero Pilates Classroom really is remarkable -- as well as some of the pot-stirrers who themselves come from religious backgrounds with their own sad history of being persecuted in this country not so very long ago. You'd think they'd get it.
On a slightly different tangent, I have to say that, as awful as the Cold War was, and as good as it is that it's over, we lost one very important thing since -- ideological perspective. A substantial number of folks now throwing around words like "marxist" and "socialist" now have no frame of reference for what they actually mean -- it's a catch-all for anyone whose policy lies to the left of your own, and it poisons any form of serious discussion.
Andy, thanks for the note. I remember in the wake of the Cold War it used to be funny (among my friends) to call someone a "communist" if they said anything at all that you disagreed with. It was an over-the-top, McCarthy-esque response that, of course, had nothing to do with politics.
Today, it's not funny anymore. It's not "ironic." Because people use "communist" and "socialist" and "marxist" even MORE, and in a way that's even MORE detached from reality or historic context. Now, some ridiculous percentage of Americans use the terms routinely, and all with a vague definition of "really bad," or "evil."
Now, rather than calling my friends communists if they say something that displeases me, I've updated to query them, "why do you hate America?"
And on the other end of the political spectrum, many resort to catch-all terms like "racist," "bigot," and "fascist" to dismiss the opinions of those who dare to disagree with them. Anyone who studies history knows that these terms, much like "communist" and "socialist," are strong charges to level against people and shouldn't be used lightly. However, many Americans on both sides seem to have accepted name-calling as a legitimate form of debate.
4 comments:
The unthinking, unself-aware vitriol over the Ground Zero Pilates Classroom really is remarkable -- as well as some of the pot-stirrers who themselves come from religious backgrounds with their own sad history of being persecuted in this country not so very long ago. You'd think they'd get it.
On a slightly different tangent, I have to say that, as awful as the Cold War was, and as good as it is that it's over, we lost one very important thing since -- ideological perspective. A substantial number of folks now throwing around words like "marxist" and "socialist" now have no frame of reference for what they actually mean -- it's a catch-all for anyone whose policy lies to the left of your own, and it poisons any form of serious discussion.
You are oh so correct!
Andy, thanks for the note. I remember in the wake of the Cold War it used to be funny (among my friends) to call someone a "communist" if they said anything at all that you disagreed with. It was an over-the-top, McCarthy-esque response that, of course, had nothing to do with politics.
Today, it's not funny anymore. It's not "ironic." Because people use "communist" and "socialist" and "marxist" even MORE, and in a way that's even MORE detached from reality or historic context. Now, some ridiculous percentage of Americans use the terms routinely, and all with a vague definition of "really bad," or "evil."
Now, rather than calling my friends communists if they say something that displeases me, I've updated to query them, "why do you hate America?"
And on the other end of the political spectrum, many resort to catch-all terms like "racist," "bigot," and "fascist" to dismiss the opinions of those who dare to disagree with them. Anyone who studies history knows that these terms, much like "communist" and "socialist," are strong charges to level against people and shouldn't be used lightly. However, many Americans on both sides seem to have accepted name-calling as a legitimate form of debate.
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